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A pilot program beginning later this month will expand the route for the Circulator trolley in downtown Bethesda to east of Wisconsin Avenue.

The free trolley currently runs through downtown Bethesda and the Woodmont Triangle neighborhood, making 20 stops along the way.

The new route will be tested starting Monday through Dec. 31 and is an opportunity for Bethesda officials to see how popular it could be on the east side of Wisconsin.

"One of the county's top interests is to help folks get around," said Kenneth Hartman, director of the Bethesda-Chevy Chase Regional Service Center. "And this goes a long way towards that."

The service began in 1999 as the Bethesda 8 Trolley, a free service funded by the county and state, originally used mainly as a commuter service for Metro riders.

It was operated by the county's Ride On bus service until September 2006 and is now managed by the Bethesda Urban Partnership, a nonprofit entrusted with the marketing and upkeep of downtown Bethesda.

The temporary loop will take the trolley across Wisconsin Avenue on Montgomery Avenue, then back west across Wisconsin on East-West Highway. There will be two stops along Montgomery Avenue, and two on East-West Highway.

During the pilot period, a third trolley will be added to the service; it normally employees two.

Ridership is steady at about 22,000 to 23,000 riders per month, according to numbers from BUP. The Circulator costs $672,000 annually to run, Hartman said. It is funded by the nearly $18 million in profits from the Bethesda Parking Lot District.

Stephanie Coppula, director of marketing and communication for BUP, said estimates for the cost of the program aren't finalized, but Hartman said it could cost as much as $900,000.

One of the main reasons for extending the service is to incorporate the Waverly House, a county-run senior citizen home along East-West Highway, Hartman said.

Nancy Davachi, resident services counselor at Waverly House, said the new route is a blessing for the center.

"For a lot of them it's a real struggle even to get to Safeway," in downtown Bethesda, she said. "It's a God-send for our community."

Hartman proposed the idea to County Executive Isiah Leggett (D) earlier this summer, he said, and the county will look at ridership numbers over the next month to determine whether the new loop will become a permanent fixture of the Circulator.

The question, he said, becomes whether funding a third trolley would be an efficient use of money.

"I think the biggest data point is how long it takes to get around," Hartman said. "Is it a two minute difference with the new route, or 10 minutes? If it's two then the answer may be just keep using two buses. If it's longer, then we have to consider a third."

If the pilot program is successful, the County Council would have to approve the additional use of the parking lot funds.

"Obviously we want to see an increase in ridership," Coppula said. "There are a lot of people on the east side of Wisconsin, and maybe this will help get them over to the other side."