LAKELAND, Fla. — There’s a new transportation option that is helping people squeeze the most out of their lunch break. It’s called "The Squeeze," and it’s designed to give people an easy and free ride downtown.
With a top speed of 19.5 mph, "The Squeeze" is an eight-seat golf cart now looping around Lakeland's downtown area between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. Monday through Friday.
The idea? Draw more people into Lakeland’s downtown during the lunch hours.
“I think that would help a lot on the parking and that. Help the people,” said workers like Jill Leigh, who believes it’s a great idea. Usually, Leigh and lots of others end up paying for parking. That is if they can find a space, which can be tough.
“Sometimes you can't even park there and then you have to find a parking spot. And then if you don't park in the right spot, then you get a ticket,” Leigh said.
"The Squeeze," with stops scattered along a strategic route, is free to ride and with pickups every six to eight minutes, there’s little if any waiting either.
“I always have a hard time finding parking. You have to pay for it. If you have that, now, I can just come and have lunch and I don't have to worry about my car getting a ticket and all that,” said Jennifer Kouromihelakis, another local worker.
The city of Lakeland tried this same idea about a year ago, but it didn’t catch on. This time, the route is more streamlined and closer to parking lots to draw people in from a little farther out.
The route also extends to spots like The Joinery, a popular food hall along Lake Mirror.
“I have seen a significant increase in the amount of on and off traffic from it,” said Jonathan Bucklew, who owns The Joinery.
Bucklew says he and other local business owners are big proponents of the idea and are glad "The Squeeze" is back.
“I think it is great for Lakeland's growth in general,” Bucklew said. “I think we need more density downtown. And I think that's the direction a lot of this is moving.”
While "The Squeeze" is free to ride, it’s not free to operate.
The city is paying Citrus Connection about $60,000 a year to run the Monday through Friday lunchtime service. After a few months, they will reevaluate, but it’s an investment the city hopes will bring more business downtown.