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PSTA outlines Grouper airport express, Snapper microtransit, ferry and Spark rapid transit affecting Dunedin
Summary
PSTA planners told the Dunedin City Commission on Dec. 2 that 2025 brought new services — a Grouper airport shuttle, reintroduced Dunedin–Clearwater ferry, the Spark premium rapid transit and a Connected Community microtransit network — designed to match post‑pandemic travel patterns and tourist demand.
Nicole Duffer, director of planning for the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority, told the Dunedin City Commission on Dec. 2 that 2025 has been a year of service expansion and experimentation for PSTA. She described three headline programs: the Grouper Airport Express, restored ferry service connecting Dunedin and Clearwater, and a new Connected Community Bus Network launched Oct. 26, 2025.
Duffer said the Grouper Airport Express runs from St. Pete–Clearwater International Airport (PIE) to Clearwater Beach for $8 one way and can be hailed curbside or via an app. “For $8, you can connect to Clearwater Beach directly,” she said. She also confirmed that the Clearwater–Dunedin ferry now operates Thursday through Sunday, roughly 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., and that reduced fares are available for qualified riders.
The agency also launched Spark, a premium branded rapid transit on 34th Street South that provides 15‑minute frequency service, and kept its Sunrunner premium bus rapid transit largely unchanged. Duffer described the Connected Community Bus Network as a redesign responding to changed ridership patterns since the pandemic — more weekend and evening travel and greater tourist demand — and emphasized coordinated transfers and timed connections to minimize wait times.
PSTA emphasized easier fare payment, noting riders can now “tap on” with contactless credit cards, Apple Pay or Google Pay instead of relying on a separate Flamingo fare card. Devin Lehi, PSTA’s planning data analyst, said Flamingo Fares contactless accounts represent about half of PSTA’s ridership and reported more than 150,000 unique accounts used last fiscal year.
Commissioners asked detailed operational questions during a follow‑up session. Topics included the Snapper microtransit zone (an on‑demand, zone‑to‑point model that does not offer arbitrary zone‑to‑zone routing), the potential impact of the Grouper airport service on local microtransit demand at Clearwater Beach, and why some trolley (Jolly Trolley Coastal) segments run every 30 minutes while others run hourly.
Duffer said the principal obstacles to raising frequency were vehicle availability and operator funding. She offered to provide the commission with route‑specific numbers for the Jolly Trolley so the city could understand the vehicle and funding gap required to reach 30‑minute service.
PSTA also reported tentative ridership improvements: city staff noted systemwide ridership around 22,000–23,000 rides per day and an early 6–7% increase measured after the October network changes, though PSTA cautioned the figure is based on one month of new‑network data.
Next steps: commissioners requested additional data on vehicle needs and funding for higher‑frequency service on routes affecting Dunedin and asked PSTA to return with specifics so the commission can evaluate local priorities.
