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Santa Rosa Island Authority to extend hours and increase public trolley services for the 2024 Pensacola Beach Air Show

PENSACOLA, Fla. (June 24, 2024) — The Santa Rosa Island Authority (SRIA) is extending public transportation hours along the island on Friday, July 12, and is adding extra buses to the schedule on Saturday, July 13, for the Pensacola Beach Air Show.

On Friday, July 12, the SRIA’s three, free open-air trolleys will begin transporting customers starting at 7:30 a.m. and extend their service to Park East, located a mile east of Portofino Resort, until 6 p.m. Following that, the regular route will resume until midnight.

On Saturday, July 13, starting at 6:30 a.m., the SRIA will have four buses in addition to the three open-air trolleys running and will extend their service area to Park East until 6 p.m. Following that, the three open-air trolleys will resume normal operations until midnight.

Post air show, trolleys servicing Portofino Resort/Park East will be staged on Via de Luna in front of Sideline’s Sports Bar and the Hampton Inn (facing east). Trolleys servicing Park West will be staged on Fort Pickens Rd. in front of the Surf & Sand Hotel and The Sandshaker (facing west).

Due to extreme traffic and congestion buildup on Friday and Saturday, trolley service to the access road stops (Grand Marlin, Radical Rides/Laguna’s, Quietwater Beach, and the Boardwalk) will be temporarily suspended until 6 p.m. Following that, the regular route will resume until midnight.

Passengers who wish to get back to their vehicles as soon as the air show ends need to be on the first fleet of buses leaving Casino Beach post show. Due to the gridlock that occurs immediately following the air show, riders should expect to wait 90 minutes or more for the trolleys or buses to return to Casino Beach, if they are not on the first trip out.

The SRIA also wants to remind the public to please use the designated pedestrian crosswalks only across the island.

The official 2024 Pensacola Beach Air Show will begin just before noon on Saturday. The free trolley and bus service is provided by the Santa Rosa Island Authority and Escambia County Area Transit (ECAT) handles the expert driving.

Santa Rosa Island Authority to extend hours and increase public trolley services for the 2025 Pensacola Beach Air Show

PENSACOLA, Fla. (June 26, 2025) — The Santa Rosa Island Authority (SRIA) is extending public transportation hours along the island on Friday, July 11, and is adding extra buses to the schedule on Saturday, July 12, for the Pensacola Beach Air Show.

On Friday, July 11, the SRIA’s three, free open-air trolleys will begin transporting customers starting at 7:30 a.m. and extend their service to Park East, located a mile east of Portofino Resort, until 6 p.m. Following that, the regular route will resume until midnight.

On Saturday, July 12, starting at 6:30 a.m., the SRIA will have four buses in addition to the three open-air trolleys running and will extend their service area to Park East until 6 p.m. Following that, the three open-air trolleys will resume normal operations until midnight.

On Friday and Saturday, buses and trolleys will service passengers from Park East and Park West to show center at Casino Beach throughout the day. Passengers will only be picked up and dropped off at designated trolley stops. All trolley stops will be designated with a bright Escambia County Area Transit (ECAT) – branded feather flag so passengers can spot each stop.

Due to extreme traffic and congestion buildup on Friday and Saturday, trolley service to the access road stops (The Grand Marlin, Radical Rides/Laguna’s, Quietwater Beach, and the Boardwalk) will be temporarily suspended until 6 p.m. Following that, the regular route will resume until midnight.

Passengers who wish to get back to their vehicles as soon as the air show ends need to be on the first fleet of buses post show. Due to the gridlock that occurs immediately following the air show, riders should expect a long wait for the trolleys or buses to return to the core, if they are not on the first trip out.

The SRIA also wants to remind the public to please use the designated pedestrian crosswalks only across the island.

The official 2025 Pensacola Beach Air Show will begin just before noon on Saturday. The free trolley and bus service is provided by the Santa Rosa Island Authority and ECAT handles the expert driving.

May 23 – September 1, 2025

4 pm to Midnight

Travel “Island Style” on a FREE Beach Trolley! With more than 30 stops, there are so many things to see and do on Pensacola Beach and our beach trolleys make it easy to enjoy them all! From Park West to Parking Lot 28B, our FREE beach trolleys make getting around a breeze!

2025’s free trolley service returns to Pensacola Beach on Memorial Day weekend, starting Friday, May 23. The trolleys will run daily from 4 p.m. to midnight (last call at 11:30 p.m.) through Labor Day Monday, September 1.

The Santa Rosa Island Authority (SRIA) will launch their free, open-air trolley service along Pensacola Beach in 2024 beginning Friday, May 24th of Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day Monday, September 2. The Pensacola Beach Island Trolley is operated by Escambia County Area Transit (ECAT) and runs daily from 4 p.m. to midnight.

The trolleys help alleviate traffic congestion by allowing visitors to park anywhere and have a convenient way to tour the whole island.

Three trolleys will operate concurrently, running three routes. The eastern route runs from Casino Beach to Portofino, the western route runs from Casino Beach to Park West near the entrance gate to Gulf Islands National Seashore, and the commercial core route runs from Casino Beach to Grand Marlin with stops occurring along the new access road and at Pensacola Beach Boardwalk.

The trolley system, funded by the SRIA, is free to all riders. To view the live trolley tracker and routes, zoom in on the map below.

Santa Rosa Island Authority to extend hours and increase public trolley services for the 2023 Pensacola Beach Air Show

PENSACOLA, Fla. (June 23, 2023) — To help alleviate traffic congestion for the Pensacola Beach Air Show, the Santa Rosa Island Authority (SRIA) is extending public transportation hours along the island on Friday, July 7, and is adding extra buses to the schedule on Saturday, July 8.

On Friday, July 7, the SRIA’s three, free open-air trolleys will begin transporting customers starting at 7:30 a.m. and extend their service to Park East, located a mile east of Portofino Resort, until 6 p.m. Following that, the regular route will resume until midnight.

On Saturday, July 8, starting at 6:30 a.m., the SRIA will have four buses in addition to the three open-air trolleys running and will extend their service area to Park East until 6 p.m. Following that, the three open-air trolleys will resume normal operations until midnight.

On Friday and Saturday, buses and trolleys will service passengers from Park East and Park West to Casino Beach throughout the day. Post-show, trolleys servicing Portofino Resort/Park East will be staged on Via de Luna directly across from Santa Rosa Island Authority (facing east). Trolleys servicing Park West will be staged on Ft. Pickens Rd. adjacent to The Sandshaker (facing west).

The SRIA wants to remind all passengers that they will only be picked up and dropped off at designated trolley stops.

Passengers who wish to get back to their vehicles as soon as the air show ends need to be on the first fleet of buses leaving Casino Beach post-show. Due to the gridlock that occurs immediately following the air show, riders should expect to wait as long as 90 minutes for the trolleys or buses to return to Casino Beach if they are not on the first trip out.

The official 2023 Pensacola Beach Air Show will begin at approximately 11 a.m. Saturday. The free trolley and bus service is provided by the Santa Rosa Island Authority and Escambia County Area Transit (ECAT) handles the expert driving.