#75: North Fork Trolley: Travel in a Unique, Antique Style

When retired Suffolk County police officer Tom Ingald was treated by his children to an Eagles concert in Boston a few years ago, he became intrigued by the Beantown Trolley.

“Something like this would be great on the North Fork, to go to things like the wineries,” he said to his wife, Kathie.

Though it was not easy to convince other business people of his unique idea. Eventually Ingald, who had moved to Riverhead in 1998, bought two trolleys from Beantown Trolley, and struggled through all the necessary regulations and procedures for a transportation enterprise.

He said, “I went through the hoops. I was a cop; paperwork doesn’t scare me.”

North Fork Trolley began service eight years ago. At the beginning Ingald said he had enormous help from Bob Eisenhart, who ran Tanger’s trolley service at the time. “He helped me get off the ground,” said Ingald. “I really didn’t know how to market this thing.”

So what is the difference between a trolley and a bus?

“In one way there is no difference,” said Ingald, “but the trolley has a unique, antique look — a vintage look. And people respond to it. You tell people they’re going to take a bus, it’s no big deal. You tell people they’re taking a trolley, there’s a whole other reaction.”

A mainstay of North Fork Trolley’s business is weddings.

“I would say that’s about 75 percent of our business right now. Every weekend we’ve got a wedding — or two or three — lined up,” related Ingald.

The company also offers winery tours. “There are twelve different wineries we take people to, and three especially we deal with: Raphael, Macari and Baiting Hollow Vineyard.”

North Fork Trolley offers “The Three Winery Tour” Friday through Monday through Oct. 31., leaving from Tanger Outlets in Riverhead at 11 a.m.

Ingald spoke about his company weathering the economic slump of the past years. “Two years ago almost all our corporate business disappeared. Last year it came back a bit, and this year looks like it’s going to be our best year ever.”

As the fall in business was linked to the economy, Ingald saw that same link with this year’s success. “It’s that phrase — ‘staycation.’ People are doing things nearby, instead of going far away.”

He remarked on the ironic fact that the vast majority of the company’s ridership comes from outside the North Fork. “The tourists are coming to us, but not the locals. In fact, I’ve offered use of the trolleys to various events out here at cost, but haven’t had any takers.”