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MATA proposes hope for Downtown trolleys but says it needs more money to run them

By , Daily Memphian Updated: August 11, 2025 4:00 AM CT | Published: August 11, 2025 4:00 AM CT

Over the past two weeks, the Memphis Area Transit Authority’s interim CEO has offered hope about the return of the Main Street trolleys.

But that hope has come with a big caveat: The embattled transit system does not have enough money to operate the trolleys even as it works to ready vehicles for a potential return. 

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Samuel Hardiman

Samuel Hardiman

Samuel Hardiman is an enterprise and investigative reporter who focuses on local government and politics. He began his journalism career at the Tulsa World in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where he covered business and, later, K-12 education. Hardiman came to Memphis in 2018 to join the Memphis Business Journal, covering government and economic development. He then served as the Memphis Commercial Appeal’s city hall reporter and later joined The Daily Memphian in 2023. His current work focuses on Elon Musk’s xAI, regional energy needs and how Memphis and Shelby County government spend taxpayer dollars.


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