INDIANAPOLIS — It appears the trial period for OurBus' route between Indianapolis and Chicago was a success, as the east coast company announced it would continue the particular route permanently.
"Things have gone surprisingly well," Axel Hellman, OurBus co-founder, said.
The company's co-founder says well over 1,000 people bought tickets for this route throughout the two-month trial period.
Each of the buses operated by Gold Shield Cars seats 56 people.
"The one and only delay was around an hour, one time, and it was a tire thing, And it only happened once," Hellman said. "It's still a solid hour faster than the train."
A previous patron of the Amtrak Hoosier State Line says he enjoys the fact that OurBus only make two stops along the way to Chicago.
"As someone that did, in fact, use the Hoosier State in years past, I will say that what I prefer about OurBus is just how cheap the tickets are as well as not too many stops," Brian Alford, an Indianapolis resident, said. "The Hoosier State would stop in Crawfordsville, Dyer and I believe one other town before making it to Chicago, and the train seemed to take longer."
The less frequent stops also made Alyssa Gill, a Loyola University student, enjoy her experience.
"I liked how it only made one stop in Lafayette on our way to Chicago," Gill said. "And that it picked me up in my town, Zionsville, and I didn't have to get up earlier to travel downtown like I would have for other Indianapolis to Chicago bus lines."
OurBus will operate once a day at 7:30 a.m. and twice on Sundays and holidays. Tickets will be anywhere from $10 to $20.
According to Hellman, there is no other goal to his company other than providing a needed service to the public.
"We want more people to suggest routes to us," Hellman said. "We are not from the area, so tell us what you feel the public needs."
The Indiana city with the most requests for an OurBus route to Chicago is Bloomington. Which, according to Hellman, could be coming soon.
