Only the naysayers assume it will be an amenity or somehow "free". Those who recognize that is worthy of consideration also assume there will be a charge of some kind associated with whatever public transport might be available. If there were a taxi company and I called a cab, I would expect to pay a reasonable fare for the miles driven. Even bus or shuttle service of some sort would require riders to pay a fare. So that naysayers argument is off the table.

Kill joy! It's not like you would have to pay for it. God forbid. Riders pay a fare. No reason to even worry about it now.

Of course you are just being silly. If enough people see that a taxi company or bus or shuttle service is desirable as an alternative transport option and can be run efficiently, then it could become a reality.

And are immediately ridiculed. Alternative transportation is a highly desirable service in a community that is aging. If I were a younger person looking to start a business, I would look for a niche that is overlooked in an area were product or service would be desired if made available. Taxi service could be a nice business for an individual or group of investors. To turn hoses up without even considering the possibilities? Of course for those among us who have their town car with chauffeur need not concern themselves with the needs of the hoi-palloi.

So as you know, this thread started out with the question of the need for and/or how sustainable a trolley system here in TV would be. Not to rehash the prior commentary on both....but do you not think the developer has looked at this issue in the past, I don’t know 20 years? It’s not like in a 55+ retirement community that said developer doesn’t have realization that it, on some levels, becomes an aging and limited mobility population....agreed. That said, in an entrepreneurial economy as rich as ours...don’t you think if rideshares, taxis, shuttle or bus services saw the need that has been expressed here....that all the above wouldn’t be deployed all over the region to date? Why is that? I know of no restrictions or ordinance that would restrict it. Maybe it’s just as simple as has been stated many times here.....the ‘demand’ doesn’t justify the need.

I sent a link earlier to another poster. Again, it’s a good option and starting point for those who need an affordable and dedicated assist on occasion...


Reservations and Routes | Sumter County, FL - Official Website

We rode one of these trolleys recently from Sawgrass to the Street of Dreams to see the model homes, and I had trouble climbing up and down the fairly steep steps to get in and out of it. I’m a pretty spry 70 y/o with just minor arthritis in my knees, but I definitely can’t see myself climbing in and out of the trolleys on a regular basis. They’d need some serious modification. Also, wouldn’t they have to legally be handicap accessible to become public transportation? I don’t know the FL laws regarding accessibility.

Good question, but aren't they already being used as public transportation?

Private.

A lot of posters seem to think that the squares are a popular destination. But, I rarely go to the squares.

How so? They offer free tours of The Villages to the public. How would anything change if they started to take people to other locations in The Villages?

Thank you, I’m fine. At this time I drive between two homes 19 hours apart. Golf cart works fine too (now that I use the kill switch to spare the battery). But my aunt at 78 was not fine. She could not do everything needed after her husband died. What she needed was public transportation to do many things; go shopping, go to doctor appointments, go for entertainment… in other words, what people do everyday. She had to sell the house she lived in for 32 years and go into independent living. She had to leave her activities and her friends she could just drop in with.

Don’t kid yourself because you can drive now. You’re going to need this service if you stay here. Especially if your spouse should pass away before you. Why do you think there is public transportation, pretty well everywhere in the world?

I appreciate your post on many levels. As you know, and we both may be pivoting a little bit here....but TV is an ‘active’ retirement community. You are correct, myself included, the day will come when properties and neighborhoods such as this, the ones many of us came from or still split time between.....become insufficient to meet the many needs we will encompass. That is the difficult decisions families make on behalf of loved ones daily in this country.

For bus/shuttle service, think of the squares as hubs where folks could transfer to another line, if needed. And rec centers as community pu and drop off locations for shuttles going to the squares.

Some threads just get more silly as time goes by .

The developer put a lot of thought into creating the villages, but their focus was on selling homes and activities, the lifestyle. But they couldn't think of everything. And the lifestyle changes and needs change.
Lots of room for entrepreneurs to come up with all kinds of sales or services to fill a void. Besides, the developer already has a business. Real-estate! Let others provide food, clothing, autos, hair and nail salons, etc. Even taxi service.