July's ridership numbers for the City View Trolley were up 60 percent compared to the same period in 2007, leading Rapid City officials to add another trolley to the fleet next year.

A total of 6,812 people have ridden the trolley this season, and another nearly 900 have used the trolley shuttle service each Thursday between the New York Street parking lot and Seventh Street as part of the downtown Summer Nights festival.

The numbers far exceed 2007 totals, although last year is not a good comparison overall because the trolley did not operate in May and June.

But July 2008 had 3,629 riders, compared to 2,158 riders in July 2007, the first full month of operation last year.

Rich Sagen, Rapid Transit manager, said a number of factors played a role in increased numbers using the service, including a more organized effort to get information about the trolley out to tourist and lodging facilities in the city.

"We have our brochures out at the airport now, and I think they're disseminated more generally in the Hills area, so people are more aware of it," Sagen said. "I think there's been a better effort to get the information out to all the downtown businesses and to the hotels."

Sagen said media coverage helped spur interest and awareness, and the success of the weekly Summer Nights festival on Seventh Street this summer also helped.

"I think when people see that, they think, 'Hey, I need to go give that a try,'" he said. "And I think people just seeing it around town makes them curious about it. Word of mouth has been important, as well. People have a positive experience, and they pass it on to their family and friends."

Mayor Alan Hanks said the city has received positive comments from citizens and tourists about the new service.

"We hope that those who haven't yet had the opportunity to ride City View Trolley do so this summer and enjoy the narrated points of interest and a touch of history about our community," Hanks said. The trolley "has enjoyed tremendous success, and the 2009 season looks even better as we add one more trolley to our fleet," he said.

The city intends to buy a third trolley in time for next summer. The additional trolley will allow two trolleys to operate on the circuit at the same time, keeping one in reserve in case of an accident or breakdown.

Currently, the city only operates one trolley on any given day. It takes 70 minutes to complete one circuit, so adding a second trolley to the route will cut the wait in half.

"Some of the comments we've heard from people is they really like the attractions; they'd like to get off at, say, Dinosaur Park, but spending 70 minutes there is too long," Sagen said. "If they only had to spend a half an hour, it's a whole different story."

Like the city's other trolley, the third trolley will be bought using donations from private donors to match federal transit funds. All of the trolleys' operation and maintenance costs are paid for by the sale of advertising space on the vehicles. No local tax dollars are used.

The trolley operates from Memorial Day weekend through Sept. 13 this year. It makes a 70-minute circuit between downtown and various other points of interest, such as The Journey Museum, the fish hatchery and Dinosaur Park, between 9:20 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. People can ride all day for $1, or 50 cents for seniors and people with Medicare cards.

A full trolley schedule is available online at rapidride.org/city-view-trolley

Contact Scott Aust at 394-8415 or scott.aust@rapidcityjournal.com