ST. LOUIS — The Loop Trolley will go for one last ride Sunday in St. Louis.
The 2.2-mile system runs from the Delmar Boulevard entertainment district to Forest Park. It finally opened in November 2018 after years of delays and setbacks.
This December, barely a year after it first hit the track, officials announced it would end operations on Sunday, Dec. 29.
The final day of service is scheduled for noon – 6 p.m. Sunday.
The Loop Trolley has sold about 17,000 fares since it launched, according to numbers compiled by the St. Louis Business Journal and 5 On Your Side. Regional government officials initially thought the trolley could see 400,000 riders in its first year.
In its first 11 months, it generated $32,456 in fares. A 2017 estimate from the Loop Trolley Company projected ticket sales in 2019 would be $428,672.
The trolley cost more than $51 million to build with $33.9 million of that coming from federal funds. City officials have expressed concern that the trolley’s failure could hinder future transportation projects and the city’s ability to get federal funding for the St. Louis region.
But the Loop Trolley’s future isn’t totally derailed just yet.
Earlier this month, the board of Bi-State Development voted to give its CEO authority to negotiate a possible takeover of the financially troubled streetcar.
CEO Taulby Roach said a preliminary plan created by Bi-State shows that the transit agency could operate the trolley on a break-even basis for four years, utilizing grants from the Federal Transit Administration. Then, he said, it’s possible the trolley could require funding from another source, including Bi-State.
During those four years, he wants to expand service to longer hours seven days a week so that riders know to expect the trolley coming down the tracks.
He'd also make it part of the Metro Transit family.
"For instance, you could transfer from the MetroLink onto the trolley and then to a bus. So, it makes sense that we would turn it into a transit asset," Roach told 5 On Your Side.
A formal plan for Bi-State to operate the trolley could be presented to the board in January or February, Roach said.