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 Illini Shuttle, operated by Suburban Express, at the Illinois Terminal in Champaign, Illinois. | |
| Founded | 1983 (1983) |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | 714 S Sixth Street Champaign, Illinois 61820 |
| Service area | Illinois, Indiana, Iowa |
| Service type | Intercity coach service |
| Destinations | 6 Universities served and Chicago suburbs |
| Website | http://www.bigbus.com |
Suburban Express is a bus company that serves six midwest universities: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Illinois State University, Eastern Illinois University, Purdue, Indiana University,and the University of Iowa. Weekend services transport students from all six campuses directly to several Suburban Chicago locations. The Illini Shuttle runs five times each day from Champaign to the Chicago Airports of O'Hare and Midway and the suburbs.
History
In 1983, a student of the University of Illinois started Suburban Express, which contracted buses from established carriers, sold tickets through a travel agent, and used public streets and suburban malls as its bus stops.
The first charter of six buses carried about 300 students to the Chicago suburbs for the Thanksgiving break in 1983 undercutting Greyhound's prices by $4 to $8. The concept was partially encouraged by a Greyhound bus driver's strike around the same period. Charter service continued in the spring of 1984, but was not allowed to sell tickets at the university travel center. By October 1985, UIUC allowed sales of Suburban Express tickets at the Illini Union Travel Center to recover revenue lost by the decline of Greyhound ticket sales.
A price war between Greyhound and Suburban Express ensued and by February 1985 both sides had reduced round trip ticket prices from $36 to $14.75. In 1984, Greyhound also contacted the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) which initiated two separate investigations of Suburban Express. The first ICC investigation in Spring of 1984 found Suburban Express to be operating a regular service without the ICC's approval. In response Suburban Express changed the operation to a private charter for UIUC students and staff excluding it from ICC jurisdiction. The second investigation was in the fall of 1984 and found the company to be operating according to ICC rules.
Suburban Express eventually displaced Greyhound as the most popular mode of transportation to and from the Chicago suburbs. In 1989, Greyhound pulled out of the Champaign-to-Suburbs market altogether. Suburban Express added Eastern Illinois University in Charleston, IL to its route structure in 1985. SE served Illinois State University from 1989-1993 and 2003–present. As of 2013, annual ridership is approximately 100,000 passengers.
References
- Special Weekend Service Between U of I and Chicago Suburbs
- Illini Shuttle service between Champaign and Chicago Airports
- ^ Fare wars - Bus service run by student butts heads with Greyhound. Dan Rozek. Daily Herald. Chicago, Illinois. Sunday, October 20, 1985. Page 20.
- Champaign man takes one of the last Concorde trips; Lynda Zimmer. News-Gazette Staff Writer. News Gazette. Champaign, Ill. Oct 29, 2003. pg. B.5.
- Russell's Guide September 1999 - GLI Schedule 397 removed from publication
- http://www.suburbanexpress.com/ord033113statement.html
Further reading
- Fare wars - Bus service run by student butts heads with Greyhound. Dan Rozek. Daily Herald. Chicago, Illinois. Sunday, October 20, 1985. Page 20. (Large article about the company, covers 3/4 of the page. Discusses the creation of the company, two attempts by the Illinois Commerce Commission to shut it down and fare war with Greyhound.)