The Woodlands Township is evaluating plans to extend its trolley service beyond Town Center. The township is working with HDR Engineers to develop new routes for the trolley service in hopes of increasing mobility.

Township president Don Norrell said much of the discussions and plans are preliminary and would go through a variety of changes before a plan is approved. The general idea is to extend services in the short term to Hughes Landing in order to connect workers and residents in The Woodlands' latest development to amenities at Market Street and Town Center.

Long-term plans could include potentially extending trolley services west of Lake Woodlands and the utilization of a transit center.

Scott Barker of HDR presented a preliminary plan for routing of three trolley routes through Town Center and into Hughes Landing that would include 10-minute intervals between trolley stops. Trolley service to Hughes Landing could occur in the next 18 months.

However, representatives from The Woodlands Development Company, co-president Alex Sutton, and vice president of planning Robert Heineman, said the routes initially proposed did not adequately make use of the tram way built for use by the trolleys and that the routes would need to be adjusted so that riders would not be required to change trolleys to get to their destination.

Township director Mike Bass said the 10-minute wait time for a trolley would also likely need to be decreased.

"Ten minutes doesn't sound long unless you are waiting," Bass said.

Barker said the cost to expand the trolley service to Hughes Landing could be about $600,000, half of which would be paid through grant funding by the Federal Transit Administration, while the township would be responsible for paying the other half.

Longer-term goals that could be implemented over the next few years could include shuttling workers to major employers such as ExxonMobil, connecting to Woodlands park and rides and the construction of a transit terminal near The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion.