City fast-tracks transportation improvement efforts

By next year, Sarasota residents and visitors may have access to a free, Uber-esque, on-demand transportation service focused on the city’s downtown core.

The proposal is the culmination of more than five years of conversation surrounding a potential downtown circulator service. With Downtown Improvement District Operations Manager John Moran leading the charge, downtown stakeholders see the transit option as a tool for combatting traffic and encouraging activity in the commercial district.

A series of questions has plagued the progress of the project, including: What kind of vehicles would be in use, and who would oversee their operation? As is frequently the case, the key concern has been funding: Who would pay to get this program launched and keep it in service?

Now, some opportunities are beginning to align. Moran believes he’s found an adequate vehicle, a six-person low-speed electric car that resembles an elongated golf cart. More crucially, the city is stepping up to provide funding for the service — staff is currently drafting a request for proposals for vendors willing to manage a pilot program.

“For the last several months now, we’ve been talking about the need to innovate and better move people around the city.” — Tom Barwin

City officials want to set aside more than $400,000 in downtown CRA funding for the downtown circulator project. Why? According to City Manager Tom Barwin, the city is interested in taking a proactive approach to alleviating seasonal traffic congestion issues.

“For the last several months now, the City Commission, staff and our community have all been talking about the need to innovate and better move people around the city,” Barwin said. “This idea, to move people more creatively in the central business district, seems to be well timed and make a lot of sense.”

That aggressive attitude expands beyond the plans for a downtown circulator.

In a recent magazine column, Barwin said the city is also drafting a RFP for “backbone transit planning” connecting the airport district, the downtown core and the medical district, with additional shuttles to the beaches. This potential program remains in its infancy — Barwin said the city is working to solicit experts who can provide input on a feasible service model.

Karin Murphy, the director of the city’s Urban Design Studio, has recommended that leaders in Sarasota-Manatee take a regional approach to transit management, rather than dividing service among various governmental entities. Last month, Barwin met with Bradenton Mayor Wayne Poston and City Administrator Carl Callahan to discuss opportunities for regional transportation collaboration.

Barwin says the initial conversation was positive, mirroring the feedback he’s gotten from other key regional institutions.

“They are very interested in joining together and having this analysis and conversation,” Barwin said. “We’ve met with the airport, with the Manatee County Administrator, and they are very interested in having this discussion.”

Barwin has also talked to representatives from Sarasota Memorial Hospital and colleges along North Tamiami Trail about transit planning. He wants to continue the dialogue with Bradenton and reach out to the cities of Venice and North Port to explore other options for intra-city synergy. Noticeably absent from the conversation is Sarasota County.

Although Murphy’s Urban Design Studio is still working alongside Sarasota County Area Transit on planning efforts, SCAT is in the midst of evaluating its own operations. Again, Barwin wants to be aggressive — which means he doesn’t want to wait for SCAT to determine if it’s on board before the city works to address its own issues.

In the coming months, Barwin hopes prioritizing transportation planning can help the city move quickly when it comes to reducing the number of cars on the road. Serious questions remain about the plausibility of the proposed transit service upgrades, but Barwin wants to eliminate the instinct to focus on small-scale transportation improvements.

“Ultimately, decisions will have to be made about how to fund and finance these things — which are realistic, and which are long-range dreams and visions?” Barwin said. “But when you look at our region, I think we have to stop thinking in our small boxes when it comes to transit.”