A joint project among the Chamber of Commerce, City of Knoxville, and UT developed in 1985 led to establishment of a trolley system of five trolleys running two routes in downtown Knoxville to stimulate downtown business and to encourage periphery parking. The closest the trolleys came to UT was the 1982 World’s Fair site. The trolleys first ran on September 15, 1986, and were free to the public. The drivers of the trolleys were UT students involved in the work-study program. Each student attended a three-hour training program and was given on-the-road training by Knoxville Area Transit drivers. Each student then had to obtain a special chauffeur license. About 22 students were initially employed to drive the trolleys, which ran from 6:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, and 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 on Saturday. The trolleys were funded for a one-year demonstration period by a Tennessee Department of Transportation initial grant of $150,000 and a spring 1987 additional grant of $60,000.
In November 1987 the Main Street Trolley Company announced that the trolleys would expand routes and add trolleys to include the UT campus, with no fare charged. The Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association and downtown business supported the trolleys. Additional students were hired to drive the vehicles. Trolley service was extended onto campus to connect the campus and downtown at the beginning of winter quarter 1988, running from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. Trolley service was free. The program, begun as a parking shuttle, was folded into the Knoxville Area Transit organization when its union employees objected to continuing to have students drive the trolleys. UT established its transportation system in 2003.