Ginny Meade, executive director of the Greater East Honolulu Community Alliance, said the trolley was a valuable asset for the community and will be missed.

"The trolley was a connection that got all of us talking together and thinking about the community as a whole rather then individuals," Meade said. "Getting merchants talking to each other even if it was just commiserating on the lack of parking or that business is good or bad — it was very magical the way it connected with the community and residents."

City spokeswoman Carol Costa said the new bus route will travel along roughly the same route as the trolley and carry the designation Kaimuki-Kapahulu-Waikiki. Route 303 will use a smaller bus and charge the same as other bus routes, $2 per person.

The trolley service, operated by E Noa Tours, began in 2000, connecting Waikiki with the business area along Kapahulu and Wai'alae avenues. The service had 2,800 riders its first month.

Meade said E Noa did more than just run the trolley; the company also promoted the service to visitors from Asia, which made up a large percentage of its riders.

Meade also said the ambience of the trolley will be lost with the change.

"People would take their kids on a trolley ride and we used them during our annual Christmas parade," she said. "That won't happen on a bus."

Edgar and Pauline Canas and their two children Jonathan, 8, and Erica, 3, rode the trolley from Waikiki on Wednesday to visit the Toys n' Joys store on Wai'alae Avenue.

The family is visiting from Stockton, Calif., and said the trolley ride made the trip fun.

"The trolley is very unique. It's better than a bus," Pauline Canas said.

"It was really nice to sit outside, especially here in Hawai'i," Edgar Canas added.

Costa said no new buses will have to be bought and no one new hired to drive the new bus route, which will cost about $240,000 to run through the end of the fiscal year, June 30, 2005, The fares collected will go to the city.

Costa said the city was paying the trolley operator about $20,000 a month, and they were keeping the $7,000 to $9,000 a month collected in fares.

City Councilman Charles Djou, who represents Kaimuki, said he is "tremendously disappointed" that the trolley service is ending.

Djou said the City Council earmarked $240,000 to keep the trolley running, but the administration decided not to do that.

"If the mayor decides he doesn't want it, he can pull the plug on it despite the fact that the council has funded it," Djou said. "He can redirect those moneys in the (city Department of Transportation Services) budget."

City Councilwoman Ann Kobayashi said the city is not saving any money by setting up the new bus route, just eliminating a service that has taken years to develop. She said the lack of marketing support will hurt businesses in the area.

Costa said the new bus route is the only way for the city to continue to provide a service similar to the trolley and city transportation director Cheryl Soon did a lot of work to make it happen.