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The long awaited Siesta trolley route will begin on July 12, Glama Carter, manager of Sarasota County Area Transit (SCAT), told about 30 people during the April 1 meeting of the Siesta Key Village Association (SKVA). The new Route 10 will supplement the current Route 11 that serves Siesta Key, with buses running from Southgate Mall and circulating through Siesta Village before stopping at a transfer station behind the Michaels store in Sarasota Pavilion, Carter and SCAT Planner Susan Montgomery explained. Michaels is located at 6549 S. Tamiami Trail. (See the accompanying map.) Stops will be approximately every 20 min- utes, Montgomery pointed out, though delays are possible during season — just as they are with regular SCAT routes. "None of our buses run to schedule during season," she cautioned. "It's a real challenge to keep those buses on schedule." (This year, Montgomery said, SCAT has used "little helper buses during the day" when Route 11 has fallen behind schedule, to assist people in reaching Siesta Key.) Additionally, Carter told the group, "Our intention is to dress those [trolleys] in a very colorful way that fits into the island atmo- sphere" while making it clear they are part of a Sarasota County operation. The goal, she noted, is for tourists to clearly associate the buses with service to Siesta Key. NEW SARASOTA COUNTY BUS SERVICE TO SIESTA KEY, 'DRESSED' AS A TROLLEY, WILL BEGIN JULY 12 AND RUN APPROXIMATELY EVERY 20 MINUTES By Rachel Brown Hackney Editor (Clockwise from left) Helene Hyland, Kay Kouvatsos, Russell Matthes, Cheryl Gaddie, Roz Hyman and Chastanna Nieman listen to remarks during the April 1 Siesta Key Village Association meeting. Photo by Rachel Hackney Sarasota News Leader April 4, 2014 Page 47