Monrovia's Trolleys May Be A Thing of the Past

A Monrovia staple designed to look like a relic from the past might now become a relic itself.

The city's propane-powered trolley cars, which have whisked residents around Old Town for the last eight years, will be on the chopping block at Tuesday's City Council meeting.

City staff is recommending that the old-fashioned people movers be discontinued to save money for future transit projects in anticipation of the Gold Line Foothill Extension.

"Sometimes you have to take a hard look at the services," City Manager Scott Ochoa said. "If we're going to have a utilitarian local circulator as a trolley when the Gold Line gets here then we're going to have to start putting money away now."

The trolley cars have had more maintenance problems than conventional vehicles, and their upkeep is no longer cost effective, Ochoa said. The trolleys themselves actually haven't been in service since last summer and their routes are currently being taken over by the city's Dial-A-Ride vehicles.

Repairs to the trolleys could cost as much as $100,000 each, and even then the city expects maintenance problems to persist, according to a staff report prepared by Craig Jimenez, a principal planner with the city. Replacing the trolleys with similar vehicles would cost about $250,000 each, the report says.

"While the trolleys provide transportation service for some members of the community, it is an expensive service to operate and at this point a major investment in new vehicles will need to be made to continue fixed route service," Jimenez's report states.

The city estimates that it could save $800,000 by discontinuing the trolley service by the end of this fiscal year.

The trolleys' route runs in a continuous loop on weekdays from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., making stops along Huntington Drive, Myrtle Avenue, Foothill Boulevard and Shamrock Avenue. They had an eight-year shelf life when the city purchased them, and the expiration date now appears to have been reached, Ochoa said.

"They've served us well, there's no two ways about it," Ochoa said.

Ochoa said the trolley's retirement would not be permanent. The city wants to reinstitute the service when the Gold Line comes to town in 2014 as a way to shuttle residents to and from the train station. That plan remains in the works, he said.

Resident Frank Hernandez hopped onto the trolley's replacement vehicle on Friday morning and said he uses the service all the time. He was even helping his friend move belongings to her new home with the service.

"It's such a convenience," Hernandez said. "I don't know a lot of other towns who run a service like this."

Hernandez said the trolleys are especially helpful during the summer months as a way to get around while beating the heat.

Asked what he would do without the trolley, Hernandez replied, "I guess I'd have to walk."