New Airport Shuttle Stop will benefit VU

[wh]

New shuttle stop links Valparaiso to Chicago airports

November 2, 2017

"...City officials approached Coach USA about adding the Valparaiso stop to the service earlier this year, to expand the city's reach into Chicago and to serve a ready market of Valparaiso University students and visitors.

On Wednesday, that included Alissa Kretzmann, a 2012 graduate of the university who was back on campus for a speaking engagement and was waiting for the shuttle to catch a flight home to Minneapolis.

"I think students will use it," she said, adding she lived in Ohio when she went to VU and took the South Shore into Chicago and caught a Chicago Transit Authority train to the airport.

Another fan of the shuttle was Doreen Olguin-Flores, executive assistant in VU's campus ministry office, who drove Kretzmann to the shuttle stop.

"I'm so excited this is here because we have a lot of speakers who come to our university. I'm very grateful," she said, adding she used to drop them off at the South Shore station in Chesterton, so they could then transfer to the CTA, as Kretzmann did. "It's two steps to the airport instead of just one."

http://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/post-tribune/news/ct-ptb-valparaiso-coach-bus-st-1102-20171102-story.html

[M]

My parents rode the bus on opening day.  They had a positive experience.

[M]

I need to update this...they had a positive experience on the way there....

They got back to the airport last night expecting to catch the last bus out of there.  That bus never arrived. After waiting a while thinking it may just be running late, someone called the bus company and was told the bus had broke down and there wouldn't be another one until early this morning.  My parents along with 6-7 people were stranded at the airport until this morning. 

A few other people I know have taken the ride a few times and have had no complaints.

[agibson]

They got back to the airport last night expecting to catch the last bus out of there.  That bus never arrived. After waiting a while thinking it may just be running late, someone called the bus company and was told the bus had broke down and there wouldn't be another one until early this morning.  My parents along with 6-7 people were stranded at the airport until this morning.

Wow. Nasty surprise at 10 or 11 PM. I'm surprised the company left it like that. They must have more than one bus. I suppose there could have been trouble rounding up a driver, or uncertainty about whether anyone would still want a ride if it came an hour or two late, etc.

I've taken the service probably a dozen times to/from the airports from Portage, over the last six years. And at least several times from Merrillville back in the 90's.

The buses are often late coming from the airports to Portage. They often leave the airport late (10-20-30 minutes), and seem to get later as they travel east. But, I've never been stranded.

They usually leave Portage, for the airports, fairly promptly.

Overall I've had a positive experience with the service. Albeit wifi would be nice. I consider it a definite positive that it's available from Valpo. Getting a ride to/from Portage late at night or early in the morning was a hassle, and having the service in Valpo should help a bit with that.

[talksalot]

I have reached out to the district representative for USA Coaches and he's chatting with "M" about this... hoping that this anomaly will be just that.   I mean even Alec Peters missed a free throw once in a while...

[M]

I'm sure it was just something that happens from time to time.  No big deal.  I do want to point out that the other folks we know who have ridden this bus several times during it's first week have had great things to say about it.

[agibson]

They seem to have changed their schedule in the last 10 days. And not in ways that helped my travel, plane tickets booked with the bus schedule in mind...

I suppose they're still getting to know the new route. But, you'd think they might try to warn you of impending changes.

It's nice, I guess, that the current schedule lets you get to O'Hare before 5 AM. But, the schedule's a little complicated. Hourly service... except when it's not. With several two hour gaps sprinkled through the schedule; and one three-hour gap that's frustrating me at the moment.

[talksalot]

From this site:
https://www.airportsupersaver.com/shuttle-bus-schedule

or, the full .pdf version:

https://www.airportsupersaver.com/assets/TRI_STATE_11032017_combined_schedule.pdf


Valpo to Midway
Hourly except 8am,1pm and 4pm

Departure Time   Arrival Time
02:10 AM   04:30 AM
03:10 AM   05:30 AM
04:10 AM   06:30 AM
05:10 AM   07:30 AM
06:10 AM   08:30 AM
07:10 AM   10:30 AM
09:10 AM   11:30 AM
10:10 AM   12:30 PM
11:10 AM   01:30 PM
12:10 PM   02:30 PM
02:10 PM   04:30 PM
03:10 PM   05:30 PM
04:10 PM   06:30 PM
05:10 PM   07:30 PM
06:10 PM   08:30 PM
08:10 PM   10:30 PM

Valpo to O'Hare
Departure Time   Arrival Time
02:10 AM   04:45 AM
04:10 AM   06:45 AM
05:10 AM   07:45 AM
06:10 AM   08:45 AM
09:10 AM   11:45 AM
10:10 AM   12:45 PM
11:10 AM   01:45 PM
12:10 PM   02:45 PM
02:10 PM   04:45 PM
03:10 PM   05:45 PM
04:10 PM   06:45 PM
05:10 PM   07:45 PM
06:10 PM   09:45 PM
08:10 PM   10:45 PM

Midway to Valpo
Hourly, except 10am, 4pm and 10pm
Departure Time   Arrival Time
05:05 AM   07:35 AM
06:05 AM   08:35 AM
07:05 AM   09:35 AM
08:05 AM   10:35 AM
09:05 AM   11:35 AM
11:05 AM   01:35 PM
12:05 PM   02:35 PM
01:05 PM   03:35 PM
02:05 PM   04:35 PM
03:05 PM   05:35 PM
05:05 PM   07:35 PM
06:05 PM   08:35 PM
07:05 PM   09:35 PM
08:05 PM   10:35 PM
09:05 PM   11:35 PM
11:05 PM   01:35 AM

O'Hare to Valpo
Departure Time   Arrival Time
04:50 AM   07:35 AM
06:50 AM   09:35 AM
07:50 AM   10:35 AM
08:50 AM   11:35 AM
10:50 AM   01:35 PM
11:50 AM   02:35 PM
12:50 PM   03:35 PM
01:50 PM   04:35 PM
02:50 PM   05:35 PM
04:50 PM   07:35 PM
05:50 PM   08:35 PM
06:50 PM   09:35 PM
07:50 PM   10:35 PM
08:50 PM   11:35 PM
10:50 PM   01:35 AM

[agibson]

Right, that shows a couple of the problems and features.

For example, that listed Valpo to Midway 7:10 AM to 10:30 AM. Why does it take an hour longer than the others?

And what's that three hour gap Valpo to O'Hare between 6:10 am and 9:10 AM?

(and the pdf has added idiosyncrasies e.g. some AM vs. PM mixups)

Talking to them on the phone, it sounds like there is no 7:10 AM from Valpo. But that there _is_ an 8:10 AM.

So, they've got some cleaning up to do.

On the plus side, they seem to have reduced the cost of the round-trip from Valpo. Now just $50.

In some of the gaps in the hourly schedule it's possible to get e.g. from the airport as far as Hammond...

[agibson]

On the plus side, I did hear another positive report about the bus service.

And even about local transport options. That, after midnight, Krazy Kab (called a couple of hours in advance, from the airport) did get someone home in Valpo for only about $10. I'd begun to doubt whether they were reliable (I'm still not 100% sure; Valpo's hardly crawling with cabs.) Uber also worked for an after-midnight arrival in Valpo; not sure under what terms.

[agibson]

TLDR: Caveat emptor. I'll be avoiding advance purchase tickets, holding backup plans and maybe extra travel time in place, and considering alternatives to the bus service.

My recent experience with the service was mostly negative.

I tried to take the service from Valpo to O'Hare last Wednesday, January 24.

On Tuesday they failed to answer my emailed queries about the schedule. When I reached them on the phone ("central office", I think) they confirmed that they were having problems with the new schedule, but confirmed that there was an 8:10 AM departure from Valpo, and no 7:10 AM departure. (In conflict with their published schedule.)

Wednesday morning there was no bus at Valpo at 8:10 AM. Calling the office (maybe "Highland" this time... which I later learned apparently has had no radio communication with the buses, for at least a week?) there was some initial confusion. At first she seemed to check the printed schedule, and thought there should have been a 7:10 AM and no 8:10 AM. But then she confirmed that there would normally be an 8:10 AM. But that it was canceled that day because of the weather. The Portage pickup canceled as well. (There was some ice on the roads some places; 294 to the airport looked about 30 minutes delayed; I discovered the hard way that 130 to 80 to Highland, and then 80 to 94 to 90 to 190 to O'Hare was A-OK.) There was no notice at the Valpo stop, and no notice on their web page.

A bus showed up at about 8:12 AM. Turns out he was the 9:10 AM bus (and he was also confused by the 7:10 AM vs. 8:10 AM Valpo bus question). I called the office back and confirmed that there was a 9:20 AM departure from Highland. So, I drove to Highland. On arrival (9:10 AM? I stopped quickly at home first) I was told that the bus was only now in Michigan City and so was probably 45 minutes delayed. (Charitably, I could assume that the roads were bad between South Bend and Michigan City, and as I say, 294 was apparently slowed; but other roads in the area were A-OK.) I can understand weather delays, and a system that covers many miles, but the rather complete failure to communicate these delays is very frustrating. So, my wife rearranged her schedule and drove me to O'Hare (it seemed like waiting for the delayed bus _might_ have gotten me to the airport on time for my flight, but that the risk for further delays seemed real).

The agent at the Highland station was clearly flustered. The errors in the schedule, the schedule changes, what I later learned was the station's apparent inability to communicate with drivers, the usual wrinkles in a bus system, and all of the upset passengers understandably had her flustered. But, she was acting as if the roads were almost impassable. "There's no schedule today, the drivers are just trying to get you there alive." If those road conditions completely destroy their schedule, I'm afraid that it must happen twice a week in the winter time.

Because of their recently updated schedule, and their now not-quite-hourly service to Valpo, I was already planning on taking my return bus (Sunday) just from O'Hare to Highland. The O'Hare experience was positive. They even had updated (e.g. leave Valpo 8:10 AM, not 7:10 AM) printed schedules available (even if their larger sign board was clearly old, e.g. from December, and had lots of things crossed out, etc.). There seemed to be one or even two (Coach USA?) staff on site who were useful in finding your bus, confirming your schedule, etc. My bus arrived maybe 10 minutes early at the domestic terminal and left right on time. The driver radioed for clearance to bypass the Crestwood stop, apparently received it, and we got in to Highland ten minutes early. This all would have been 100% OK for me personally (accepting, at this point, that they changed their schedule, and that not every Highland arrival can get you to Valpo). My wife arrived on time to pick me up, and I was OK.

But, at the Highland station, there were at least 20 people (20 to 30?), some of them a bit agitated, waiting inside. I found out that some of them had been waiting more than two hours for a bus to South Bend. Checking the schedule, this apparently meant that at least two buses had failed to arrive. Apparently several buses (like mine) had arrived but were going only as far as Michigan City. Apparently each time this was a surprise to the waiting passengers _and to the staff at the Highland station_. They appeared to have no idea of what was going on, or when a bus would arrive to take these people to South Bend.

As far as I could, the weather was fine all over northern IL and IN on Sunday. I could see no weather-related reasons for the delays.

None of these delays have appeared on their websites "Alerts" section.

(The bus from O'Hare still had the _old_ December schedules available for passengers to take. At least when I was outbound, the Highland station was handing out paper copies of the same flawed pdf schedule that's _still_ posted on their website.)

As I was about to leave the Highland station, I recognized another VU prof waiting in the station (not in itself surprising; I bump into somebody I know relatively often on the bus). He and his wife had apparently come in from O'Hare an hour before I had. And were _still_ waiting for the Valpo bus that should have been there to meet them an hour earlier.

So, we re-arranged the seating in my small mini-van, and crammed the six of us (my wife and kids had picked me up) and our luggage into the car, and all drove back to Valpo. (There was at least one other fellow trying to get to Portage, who had also arrived before me. Unfortunately my car was crammed full.)

There was some mention of a recent affiliation with Megabus, and that this might be connected to a down-turn in service. I don't know all the details, but the Airport Supersaver (which we all still seem to mostly call the Tristate) does seem to have some connection (e.g. logo on their website) with Megabus, and both are apparently under the umbrella of Coach USA. There have been some other changes in recent months (obviously the November Valpo addition; at some point by Christmas they re-scaled their discount for kids, now it's more like 50% off rather than kids ride free; the schedule change in January with at least no/minimal advance notice on their website; on the positive side the round-trip from Valpo has also been discounted by $2).

Needless to say, I won't be purchasing any more advanced tickets for this service.

It seems like, at least in winter, one should be prepared for unscheduled and unreported delays of at least an hour or two. Perhaps that means having backup transportation plans.

In general, the company has given me very little recent indication that they can operate a remotely reliable transportation service. Sometimes it works OK. Sometimes you apparently get left at the airport overnight, left waiting in Valpo for an hour, or left waiting in Highland for several hours.

Caveat emptor.

Unfortunately, I don't know of decent alternatives. Get a friend to drive you to the airport. Drive to the airport and leave a car. I've had good luck with Epic Limo a couple of times, but it's only price competitive for a big group (for one person it might be a factor of 5 more expensive). Maybe a one-way car rental to the airport? I suppose I should look again at South Shore, transfering downtown to the El.

[agibson]

Looks like the South Shore takes about as long as the bus, but with a different schedule (maybe more during rush hour, fewer at other times). Maybe it's more reliable. It's cheaper. But, you have to manage the change to the CTA El train downtown.

Looks like a one-way rental (checked Enterprise) is a little cheaper than Epic Limo, but not a lot cheaper.

Renting a car and paying to park it at the airport for several days, waiting for you, could be price competitive to the one-way rental.

[bbtds]

But, you have to manage the change to the CTA El train downtown.

To O'Hare:
Walk out of Millennium Station west on Randolph on the south side of the street. Go 3 blocks to Dearborn (pass Wabash and State) and turn left. Go 1/2 block down Dearborn and you will see the CTA Blue Line entrance into the subway. The Picasso artwork will be across Dearborn from the Blue Line entrance. Catch a Blue Line train to O'Hare.

https://www.google.com/maps/@41.8838514,-87.6294408,3a,75y,180h,90t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sGqB_opc4aXoGUOn_D4mSrw!2e0!7i13312!8i6656

to Midway:
Go west on Randolph to the next street (1 block) Wabash. Turn left on Wabash and go 1 block to Washington. Go up the stairs to the CTA station above the street at the intersection of Washington and Wabash. Brand new station. Catch an Orange Line train to Midway.

No google streetview of this station yet. It's too new.

Here is best google streetview I can get of stairs to new station at Washington & Wabash.

https://www.google.com/maps/@41.8832023,-87.6261829,3a,75y,180h,90t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sDgH9lOTCr5YwTyAysjBUMQ!2e0!7i13312!8i6656

[agibson]

(The bus from O'Hare still had the _old_ December schedules available for passengers to take. At least when I was outbound, the Highland station was handing out paper copies of the same flawed pdf schedule that's _still_ posted on their website.)

They have now at least updated the pdf schedule on their web page...

Apparently at the last city council meeting there was a complaint from the public about the service. Sounds like somebody from the city might take a look.

I'm flying again next week... curious about the bus (and will be traveling with extra luggage in a couple of weeks, making the bus extra attractive for at least that second trip...), but really just can't abide padding my schedule by a couple of hours out of distrust. Thinking to try the train this time.

[agibson]

The South Shore was very pleasant. On time. Free wifi. Millennium Park station is nice, in a convenient location. Transfer to the L isn't bad if the weather's OK and you don't have too much luggage. The L is getting old, and wasn't cleaned recently. But, not too bad. But, the South Shore schedule is pretty limited, heavily slanted towards commuters. They do seem to have better accountability for service delays (they post some to twitter, some end up on the traffic report on the radio), and delays seem comparatively rare (couple times a month?).

I might add that I've been pleased with the Chicago Dash in the past, as well. I've wondered, but never asked, if you could use them for a reverse commute. That is, meet them downtown in the morning to go to Valpo. It's not an advertised surface. Just 3 or 4 buses a day, each way. Commuter hours. Only gets you downtown.

The Tristate Coach/Airport Supersaver was again a moderate disaster. The first bus out of O'hare after my redeye was on time. The driver told me right then that the connecting bus to Valpo was canceled, couldn't tell me more. Bought a ticket on the bus with a credit card. Half asleep, I'd heard him discussing the Valpo bus on the radio. At the Highland station he wouldn't tell me anything, made me go inside. Maybe making me miss a chance to get a ride to at least Portage, which a driver to Michigan City or South Bend did offer some other customers. Turns out _two consecutive_ buses to Valpo were canceled. No weather. No explanation. No apology. The staff member at the Highland station said they simply found out about cancellations when they got there in the morning. That some days (!) there were no cancellations. She did at least have a radio this time, but still seemed to have limited information about even ongoing operations. I heard her talking on the phone with a customer, probably at Valpo, asking about a no-show bus. She was giving her driving directions to Highland. A bus of passengers came in from South Bend. I heard the driver talking to dispatch on his cell phone, he was being asked to extend his shift to take them to O'hare, but he couldn't do it. It was later announced that they'd be taken to Crestwood and take an Uber from there (nobody offered me an Uber). For the first time, I noticed a wifi network at the Highland station. So, I at least had wifi to make alternate arrangements (my wife coming to get me).

Hard to see how they can stay in business like this. Morale seemed close to zero among the employees. The driver's comment was "New company, doesn't know what the hell they're doing." They seem pretty clearly short on drivers. And very short on customer service or communication.

Service _from_ O'hare as far as Highland has worked a couple of times in a row for me. Maybe it's even been more consistent, in terms of schedule, than under the old management. But, it's hard to trust this as a pattern. Everything else has been some flavor of a disaster. The service can still be of some use. But, don't buy tickets in advance. Have backup arrangements in place or be prepared for delays of several hours. Consider calling the morning of your travel to ask about cancellations (sometimes, apparently, they're known that morning).

[crusader05]

I wonder if with the proposed double tracking for the South Shore if there will be more options East of Gary to make it an even better option.

[FWalum]

The Tristate Coach/Airport Supersaver was again a moderate disaster. The first bus out of O'hare after my redeye was on time. The driver told me right then that the connecting bus to Valpo was canceled, couldn't tell me more. Bought a ticket on the bus with a credit card. Half asleep, I'd heard him discussing the Valpo bus on the radio. At the Highland station he wouldn't tell me anything, made me go inside. Maybe making me miss a chance to get a ride to at least Portage, which a driver to Michigan City or South Bend did offer some other customers. Turns out _two consecutive_ buses to Valpo were canceled. No weather. No explanation. No apology. The staff member at the Highland station said they simply found out about cancellations when they got there in the morning. That some days (!) there were no cancellations. She did at least have a radio this time, but still seemed to have limited information about even ongoing operations. I heard her talking on the phone with a customer, probably at Valpo, asking about a no-show bus. She was giving her driving directions to Highland. A bus of passengers came in from South Bend. I heard the driver talking to dispatch on his cell phone, he was being asked to extend his shift to take them to O'hare, but he couldn't do it. It was later announced that they'd be taken to Crestwood and take an Uber from there (nobody offered me an Uber). For the first time, I noticed a wifi network at the Highland station. So, I at least had wifi to make alternate arrangements (my wife coming to get me).

17 year old Niece flew into O'Hare from Orlando in order to do her Valpo Music School audition and of course was informed about the new bus service.  As mentioned above, found out once she arrived that service to Valpo had been canceled.  After freaking out and sitting in the station for hours, my brother-in-law was able to get off work, pick her up and drive her to VU.  Not the best of experiences.....

[agibson]

17 year old Niece flew into O'Hare from Orlando in order to do her Valpo Music School audition and of course was informed about the new bus service.  As mentioned above, found out once she arrived that service to Valpo had been canceled.  After freaking out and sitting in the station for hours, my brother-in-law was able to get off work, pick her up and drive her to VU.  Not the best of experiences.....

Informed by... music? Admissions? By somebody at the university, it sounds like. Not a good look, to be sure.

It was, indeed, a music prof to whom I gave the ride back to Valpo (after he was stuck in Highland), probably a few weeks before the auditions.

[agibson]

By way of full disclosure (e.g. not disclosing only the worst experiences), one of my colleagues did have a moderately positive experience reasonable. His 6 AM departure from Valpo left on schedule. Arriving at Highland on the way to Valpo his scheduled bus never arrived. But the one an hour later did. He seemed not displeased.

[agibson]

To summarize briefly, the service may have improved a little in the last months. I did manage one trip Valpo <--> Midway without any significant problems. But, problems with the service did continue.

A week or two ago they announced that they would end the Valparaiso service as of about August 20. The rest of the service will continue.

So, for Valpo, it's back to the Portage stop being the closest. If they can use this change to get back to a similar level of reliability to what they've had over the years, this may be for the best.

It would be nice to have a reliable, affordable, airport service from Valpo. But, Coach USA under the current management didn't seem able to provide that. (And has suggested that the ridership numbers may not have warranted it.)

[elephtheria47]

I thought they had the numbers, just not the drivers? The bus goes by my window several times a day with people on the bus.

[agibson]

With so many international students and kids from other parts of the country, how hard would it be for VU itself to charter a few buses for students to get to the airport? Charge the students a fee to cover costs.

It could be a thing, but I bet demand wouldn't be _huge_, and might make it hard to offer an attractive service.

At the ends of semesters, people tend to leave at various times during finals week, when their exams are finished.

If you offer a bus (or multiple) after all the finals are done, will anybody still be around to take it? Otherwise... do you offer one a day? Early in the morning?

Alternative transportation exists (get a ride to the airport, get a ride to the South Shore, or to the Portage bus stop; maybe a few taxi/limo/uber) so if any VU-sponsored service isn't convenient (wrong day, wrong time, price not attractive) then customers will look to other options.

I think the university had some role in starting up the local Valparaiso bus service (maybe the Student Senate even kicked in an initial, or even ongoing, contribution?) which does include some options to the South Shore.

[bbtds]

which does include some options to the South Shore.

Unfortunately the Valpo bus service only goes up to the Dune Park Station on weekends. A weekday bus up to the Dune Park Station on a week day morning and a weekday bus from the Dune Park Station in the evening would be a great improvement. Especially during the summer months when people are traveling.