Bus-and-turn Lane Tips for Drivers:
DO: Enter bus lanes to make a turn
DO: Look for buses before entering bus lanes
DON’T: Drive in bus lanes for more than one block
DON’T: Park or unload your vehicle in bus lanes
DON’T: Pull in front of buses
The SunRunner uses the inside lane on 1st Ave. N. between 66th St. and 3rd St. and on 1st Ave. S. between S. Pasadena and 20th St.
The SunRunner uses the outside lane on 1st Ave. S. between 16th St. and 4th St.
The SunRunner uses the outside lane on S. Pasadena between Central Ave. and Huffman Way. Bikes are permitted in this section only.
SUNRUNNER FOR CYCLISTS
Special Bike Features:
- Interior bus bike racks
- Standing room for cyclists
- Ramps + elevated platforms
- Bike racks*
- Bikeshare*
*At many stations.
Note: Please do not bring rental bikes or scooters onboard. Tandem bikes are NOT allowed on the SunRunner.
Bike Lane Improvements:
- Wider lanes added to Central Ave. (66th St. to 34th St.)
- Buffered lanes added on 1st Ave. N & S (34th St. to 3rd St.)
- Bikes permitted in bus lanes on S. Pasadena
Pinellas Trail:
- Runs along the route on 1st Ave. S
- Crosses SunRunner route at S. Pasadena & at 4th St. N
HOW TO USE INTERIOR BIKE RACKS
LEARN MORE
Sharing the Road
- Bus-and-turn lanes are designated lanes that help transit and emergency vehicles move more efficiently through traffic.
- Paved with rust-red asphalt, painted with “BUS and ← ONLY,” and marked with signage, the SunRunner’s bus lanes are easy to spot to avoid incorrect usage.
- Bus-and-turn lanes help the SunRunner to provide its customers efficient and reliable service by avoiding traffic congestion.
- Bus-and-turn lanes allow SunRunner to move more people in less time.
- Having improved public transit removes cars from the road.
- Bus lanes allow PSTA to increase bus service without impacting traffic.
- Emergency vehicles can use the bus lanes to get to those in need more quickly and safely.
- Bus lanes are always available for evacuations during extreme weather events.
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Yes, you may drive in the bus lane for up to one block when:
- Making a turn or merging into traffic after turning
- Accessing driveways or local businesses
- Accessing adjacent street parking
- Carefully pull into the lane.
- Be sure to use your turn signal and look around for buses in the lane. If a bus is present, always pull in behind it.
- You can ride in the bus lane for no more than a block before or after your turn.
- No. Vehicles parked in the bus-and-turn lane risk being ticketed or towed immediately.
- Vehicles driven in the bus lane are subject to tickets and fines.
- Vehicles parked in the bus lane are at risk of being ticketed or towed immediately.
- Many street parking spots along the route were widened to make them safer and easier for drivers to use.
SunRunner for Cyclists
- Yes. While most buses have two bike racks on front, SunRunner buses have level boarding and three bike racks plus standing room for cyclists on board. Note: Tandem bikes are NOT allowed on the SunRunner.
- Many SunRunner stations also have bike racks if you’d prefer to ride to the station and leave your bike there for when you return.
- If you’d like to bike to or from your SunRunner station but don’t have your own bike, there are also multiple bikeshare locations close to a SunRunner station. Visit gohopr.com/coast/ for more information. Please do not bring bikes or scooters from rental services onboard.
- Please do not try to load a tandem bike (two-seater) in the interior bike rack.
- Bike lanes between 66th St. and 34th St. were moved from 1st Ave. N and 1st Ave. S to Central Ave., where new, wider bike lanes have been added.
- Cyclists will be able to ride in the bus-and-turn lane on SR-693/Pasadena Ave. between Central Ave. and Huffman Way.
- Buffered bike lanes have been added on 1st Ave. N and 1st Ave. S between 34th St. and 3rd St.
SunRunner Project & Operations
- Initial studies and planning for the SunRunner project began in 2009.
- After numerous studies and public interest meetings were held, the design process began in 2018.
- Route design was completed and unveiled on July 8, 2020.
- Construction groundbreaking took place August 17, 2020.
- Connecting downtown St. Petersburg to the award-winning Pinellas County beaches was a top priority in the SunRunner design.
- PSTA is preparing for the future: there are currently 50,000 jobs and 40,000 residents within a half-mile of the SunRunner route – numbers that are only growing.
- The high-frequency service will help workers get to their jobs on time and customers get to businesses more reliably and with less traffic congestion.
- The SunRunner travels the region’s highest ridership corridor in the state’s most densely populated county.
- By helping people get to jobs, education, and medical care, the SunRunner is helping improve equity in southern Pinellas County.
- On May 29 2020, PSTA was awarded $21.8 million in federal grant funding from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA)’s Capital Investment Grant program, which covered approximately half of the capital cost for building the SunRunner. This is the first Capital Investment Grant awarded to the Tampa Bay region.
- Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) provided 25% of the funding while PSTA, and City of St. Petersburg split the remaining construction costs.
- Future operating costs will be supported by PSTA and FDOT.
- PSTA hopes to build several additional BRT routes like SunRunner in the future; however, none are currently funded.
- The Central Avenue Trolley and the SunRunner work together to complement each other. The Central Avenue Trolley:
- Runs in regular traffic along Central Ave. with more frequent stops, enabling customers to get to destinations in between the SunRunner stations.
- Runs from the St. Pete Pier to Pinellas County Beach Park, connecting the SunRunner route to even more popular destinations.
- Has standard bus stops easily accessible from businesses on Central Ave., compared to SunRunner’s dedicated stations and elevated platforms.
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