Downtown Lunch Trolley a ringing success so far
The Downtown Lunch Trolley passes a stop on Montgomery Street. The trolley runs weekdays from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. ferrying people to and from downtown restaurant areas.
There may be no free lunch, but if you are eating that lunch downtown, there will continue to be a free ride to it.
Montgomery's lunch trolley experiment seems to be a success.
A few weeks ago, Montgomery Mayor Bobby Bright said the trolley was an attempt to help downtown restaurants, but as with every other city project, he said if it turned out people weren't using it, he would have no problem pulling the plug.
But people are using it, more people each week. This week, its fourth, the lunch trolleys were averaging more than 100 riders a day.
Many riders say they are trying new restaurants because of the service. City leaders say they are pleased enough with the trolley project that they are not considering any cuts to the system, which has two of the city's three trolleys running the lunch loop.
Montgomery launched the lunch trolley April 24, the same day it opened a traffic circle in Court Square.
Another change has also helped the downtown restaurants. On the same day the city opened the traffic circle and started the lunch trolleys, it also kicked off a free wireless Internet service within a block of the square.
Laptop computers are becoming commonplace on benches around Court Square, and restaurant owners said the lunch trolleys, the traffic through the square and the free WiFi are all helping.
Larry "Boomer" Strichik, who runs Boomer T's Bar-B-Q, half a block from Court Square, said business is up so heavily that he plans a move to a larger location on Dexter Avenue. His restaurant had been stuck at a dead-end during construction on Court Square.
"Business has picked up about 25 or 30 percent," he said. "The trolley is some help, but the circle being open is the biggest thing."
Strichik said his business, which has seating for about 20, will move a couple of blocks to a building with indoor seating for 60 and a small outdoor dining area.
"They just did a great job," he said of the rebuilt Court Square.
Away from the center of downtown, at Martha's Place on Sayre Street, the trolley is making more of a difference.
Owner Martha Hawkins reported an almost immediate increase is business when the trolley started.
Martha's is one of those tucked-away kind of places that previously required a car to reach. Now the trolley has a marked stop just a few steps from the front door.
Michael McDermott, who drove one of the lunch trolleys Wednesday, handed riders a trolley map, which has restaurant locations marked. He said riders often notice a place they haven't visited before and stop for a meal.
Becky Quakenbush boarded a lunch trolley Wednesday for a late lunch. She was with Chasity Vickers, and both said it was their first trip on the trolley.
The pair was headed for Lek's Railroad Thai, but looked over the map for places to visit in the future.
"There are places I would find out about, but I wouldn't know how to get there or where to park," she said.
Roy Trolinger, who works in the Department of Human Resources in the cluster of state office buildings, is a trolley regular. He rides an average of twice weekly, usually to one of his favored restaurants within a block or so of Court Square.
"It is a great new way to get to lunch and back in an hour," he said.
Trolinger generally has to park several blocks from his office, which makes the trolley even more attractive.
"It almost takes me longer to get in my car than it does to get to lunch (on the trolley)," he said.
Trolinger said he talks to fellow employees regularly about riding the trolley. Many of his co-workers brown-bag lunch or eat in a state cafeteria.
He said he prefers to get out of the office and perhaps meet his wife, who works in the Colonial Center near Court Square, for lunch.
Increased ridership is obvious, he said, and predicted it will continue to pick up.
"The first week, it was kind of sparse," he said. "By the third week it really picked up."
Jeff Downes, executive assistant to Montgomery Mayor Bobby Bright, said the city has noted the trolley's growing ridership.
"We are pleased with where it is now," he said. "We have installed all of the signs and the Web site is up and running."
Downes said most of the feedback that the city has received has been positive, with a few suggestions for minor route changes.
He said growth has been steady, but Trolinger predicted it will spike soon.
"As the weather heats up, it is going to pick up in this nice air conditioning," he said.
McDermott attempted to drum up extra riders by giving most patrons a handful of brochures and asking the riders to distribute the literature.
He said a common boost in ridership comes from work groups going out to eat together. According to the driver, it is not uncommon for a trolley to make a complete loop with no more than a rider or two, then on the next loop to pick up a dozen or more riders going together to the same eatery.
Prev
Linear Mode
