PSTA to end Snapper Safety Harbor service Oct. 1

SAFETY HARBOR, Fla. — The Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority will end its Snapper Safety Harbor on-demand transportation service Oct. 1 after its board of directors voted to eliminate the program to lower costs and balance the agency’s fiscal year 2027 budget.

PSTA said Snapper Safety Harbor has been its lowest-ridership service for the past year. The decision is expected to save the agency about $117,000.

The service provides on-demand rides to and from Countryside Mall and Safety Harbor, as well as destinations within the service zone. Some riders said they rely on Snapper Safety Harbor for daily transportation.

Adam Darby said he uses the service every day to get his daughter to and from school.

“We eat, I checked the schedule for the Snapper. Usually schedule ahead of time, and then we hang out, look over homework or whatever until the app tells us when Snapper is coming,” Darby said.

Darby said the service has been the option that works best for his family.

“The price, the convenience, the app is really great. The drivers have been great. It’s been the thing that made the most sense,” Darby said.

The Mattie Williams Neighborhood Family Center also sees riders who use PSTA Access or Snapper Safety Harbor, Executive Director David Hale said.

“A lot of the neighbors and families that we serve here at the Neighborhood Family Center rely on public transportation or biking or walking,” Hale said. “Many of them don’t have the means for a car, although that might be a goal they have in the future.”

Hale said some people who used Snapper Safety Harbor have raised concerns about losing the service.

“We have heard many complaints from folks who relied on that service that they really don’t have another option,” Hale said.

In a statement, a PSTA spokesperson said, “PSTA is always working to provide the best public transit options for customers while always ensuring our limited funding is used efficiently.”

PSTA said it’s adding Direct Connect service to Safety Harbor. Direct Connect offers discounted Uber or Lyft rides to nearby bus stops.

Darby said his family is considering its options, but he does not believe Direct Connect would work for his daughter’s ride to school.

“The nearest one, I think, was on McMullen Booth Road, which is further to walk there than it would be to walk to the school,” Darby said.

PSTA held two public hearings to receive public comment on proposed route cuts, including Snapper Safety Harbor. The agency said no citizens or riders of the Snapper Safety Harbor attended those hearings.