It may be $1 to ride the trolley next year.

City Manager Ron LeBlanc recommended the Durango City Council consider the rate increase as part of his budget presentation Tuesday afternoon.

Ever since the trolley became a free service in 2009, it has continued to be a drain on the city’s Transit Department’s savings, said Amber Blake, multi-modal administrator, at an advisory board meeting last week.

Charging for the trolley likely will cut down on the number of people who are riding it for shelter. However, even if the trolley saw a substantial decline in ridership, charging would still help stabilize the transit department’s funds, Blake said.

Transfers to and from the bus to the trolley would remain free.

Fort Lewis College students would not be impacted by the change because transit passes are built into their fee structure, she said. In addition, discounted passes would still be available to seniors and disabled people.

The original idea behind offering the trolley as a free service was to encourage tourists to explore downtown without their cars, said Paul Wilbert, multi-modal advisory board chairman. Some board members would still like to encourage that and discussed possibly partnering with hotels in the future to promote and incentivize the trolley.

The final decision on the trolley fare will be part of the city’s 2015 budget.

mshinn@durangoherald.com