Shuttle bus from downtown Detroit to Metro Airport to begin service in March

[Airforceguy]

A proposed express bus route between downtown Detroit and Detroit Metro Airport that would operate 16 roundtrips each day is expected to start offering rides in March.The service would run from about 3:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. and cost up to $15 per trip, although reduced fares in some cases could drop that substantially for those eligible, according to information supplied by the Regional Transit Authority of Southeast Michigan.

The RTA provided the latest details during public hearings this week on the proposed route, which the Free Press first reported on in February. Public comment is being accepted through Jan. 17 via phone at 313-402-1020, email at info@rtamichigan.org or regular mail at RTA, 1001 Woodward Ave., Suite 1400, Detroit, MI 48226.RTA officials envision a soft launch of the service ahead of the NCAA March Madness men’s basketball Midwest Regional games scheduled for March 29-31 at Little Caesars Arena, with a formal opening ahead of the NFL Draft scheduled for April 25-27 in Detroit.

The route would travel primarily along Interstate 94 and offer airport stops at both the McNamara and Evans [[North) terminals and in downtown Detroit at a location in the area of Washington Boulevard and State Street. Those who spoke during an online public hearing Wednesday were generally enthusiastic about the project but some also expressed concern about the cost, noting that it’s more than the $2 fare charged for SMART’s Michigan Avenue FAST bus to the airport from Detroit. The FAST bus is a limited-stop route but would take about twice as long as the new RTA express route, which is expected to make the trip in half an hour, according to Julia Roberts, RTA planning and innovation director.

https://www.freep.com/story/news/loc...n/72188387007/

[Danny]

Why pay $15.00 for a shuttle bus when I can take the SMART BUS routes 125, 280 and FAST 261 for $2.00!

[Richard]

Because you are a local and know that,from a tourist standpoint,paying $15 dollars for a shuttle that says it will take you from point A to point B in unfamiliar territory is nothing.

Even more so in a world where a $60 ride to the airport is not uncommon.

[royce]

I was in NYC last fall and finding out that an Uber from LaGuardia to my destination was going to cost $90, I got on a free shuttle bus from the airport that would take me to a subway station. I missed my subway stop and ended up touring the neighborhood [[Queens) before catching the Uber anyway, but that free shuttle bus was right on time. I'm just amazed that Detroit Metro Airport hasn't had any shuttle buses, free or paid, in all the years that I have been using the airport. Has Metro Cars limo service lost their contract? Also, do the downtown hotels have shuttle buses that will take you to the airport?

[gthomas]

Just build a damn light rail in the middle/along of I-94 from Detroit to Metro Airport. Simple

[K-slice]

Just build a damn light rail in the middle/along of I-94 from Detroit to Metro Airport. Simple

This X1,000,000.

No one wants to ride a bus.

[Hypestyles]

I hope this is fast-tracked and gets going.

[IrishSpartan]

Once upon a time Greyhound ran buses from downtown to Metro Airport. These Greyhound Airport buses picked up at the hotels. The parking options were far less back then so these buses served various purposes.

[Richard]

It gets involved,there are charter packages where transportation and hotel is included.

In Orlando the heavy weight hotels have their own shuttles,they pick up large groups at the airport,then also take them to the attractions.

The smaller hotels sub-contract it out,so as a shuttle operator you get paid on a group pick up,a kick back from the hotel and kick backs from every place you take that group to even to a restaurant.

Like every other city Detroit has its issues,when it comes to tourists you have to control their movements so they do not end up going down the wrong streets.

This is good for Detroit even if you expand it because of the layover with International flights,they have enough time to be picked up,taken on a historical tour,or to what ever so they can see the best of the city with no risk.

They spend money and your object is to showcase the city and get as much as their money as you can,before they catch that next flight.

Detroit is a city with a world wide name recognition,That’s half the battle,not sure why people are so stand offish when it comes to tourism,yea okay if you want no part of it but it does have a tendency to pump millions into the local economy without much effort.

I have Philippine friends,Detroit is a layover before heading across the water,I ask them if they ever get out into the city and they tell me they are scared,but that is no different then they would be in any other city.

You have a casino,they love to gamble and they like to shop and buy stuff but on the other hand how many from all over the country that sit in the airport where if they got out into the city might even think about moving there after they see the good side?

13,725,591 passengers flew in or out of Detroit Airport in 2022 ,imagine if you got them to drop $20-$30-$100 in the city.

[Gistok]

"An increasingly popular tourist destination, Detroit receives 16 million visitors per year. In 2015, Detroit was named a "City of Design" by UNESCO, the first U.S. city to receive that designation. Time named Detroit as one of the fifty World's Greatest Places of 2022 to explore."

[Richard]

It’s overwhelming though when you search things to do in Detroit,the things to do this weekend that is posted on this forum,is easy and simple to follow.

There are different levels,you could take all of the ones that have separate listings across the Internet and create a package.

Its kinda like taking a cruise,the whole time you are there it is all laid out for you.

How long will you be visiting Detroit? 1 week ? Okay here is the list,or we have a package deal,shuttle picks you up from the airport,takes you to the hotel and then the shuttle will collect you at 9 am and the itinerary begans.

They do it with foreigners wanting to come to the states,it’s a charter service where everything is all inclusive.

Orlando/Disney is just as bad as Detroit in that aspect but they control the tourists so they do not go wandering off to places where bad things can happen,which creates a positive image which increases tourism.

We are only really discussing it because of the shuttle service which is an important link in the chain.

I have had layovers with Amtrak,Chicago sucks because you are overwhelmed by a transit system that you had to figure out otherwise just spend 6 hours sitting in the station.

DC is different even though they also have an overwhelming transit system,they have other options.

For $20 back then anyways was Old Town Tours,you jump on their trolly shuttle and it stops at every museum or thing you want to see,they come every 15 minutes,you get off check out what you want to see,then jump back on and go to the next stop.

It was simple and not overwhelming and you did not need a car.

[Burnsie]

Just build a damn light rail in the middle/along of I-94 from Detroit to Metro Airport. Simple

You seriously think that project would be simpler than just starting up a bus service? The Qline cost $187 million for 3.3 measly miles. A light rail in the median of I-94 from Merriman Rd. to Michigan Ave., and from there to Campus Martius would be some 18 miles long. You'd have to expand no less than 15 overpasses, and deal with a 2.5 mile stretch east of the River Rouge where there *isn't* any median. And that doesn't even address having to build crossings over emergency vehicle turnarounds.

Of course it's technically feasible, but that bears no relation to being politically feasible. I'm a railfan but a frequent express bus from the ground transportation area at Metro to downtown is infinitely more realistic.

[K-slice]

You seriously think that project would be simpler than just starting up a bus service? The Qline cost $187 million for 3.3 measly miles. A light rail in the median of I-94 from Merriman Rd. to Michigan Ave., and from there to Campus Martius would be some 18 miles long. You'd have to expand no less than 15 overpasses, and deal with a 2.5 mile stretch east of the River Rouge where there *isn't* any median. And that doesn't even address having to build crossings over emergency vehicle turnarounds.

Of course it's technically feasible, but that bears no relation to being politically feasible. I'm a railfan but a frequent express bus from the ground transportation area at Metro to downtown is infinitely more realistic.

Except that no one with the means to avoid a bus, rides a bus. You will not convince the average joe who can spend hundreds or thousands of dollars on air travel to jump on a bus. The arguments for bus vs rail transit are always the same, bus promoters will time and again argue for bus's flexibility, low up front costs, ease of implementation, and so on. However they miss the simple fact that Americans don't want to ride busses, and won't if there is any viable alternative.

[Burnsie]

Except that no one with the means to avoid a bus, rides a bus. You will not convince the average joe who can spend hundreds or thousands of dollars on air travel to jump on a bus. The arguments for bus vs rail transit are always the same, bus promoters will time and again argue for bus's flexibility, low up front costs, ease of implementation, and so on. However they miss the simple fact that Americans don't want to ride busses, and won't if there is any viable alternative.

How about we see how this pilot run goes before assuming that? As the news reports state, this will be a no-intermediate stop trip with Indian Trails buses, the same kind that the popular Michigan Flyer uses between East Lansing, Ann Arbor and Metro. I have ridden that numerous times, have you ever been on it?

This isn't a Greyhound that you'd be stuck on for hours, it'll have the same passengers that are on the planes, not random bus station characters. And you still haven't addressed where the hundreds of millions to build a light rail would come from.

[Zacha341]

Umm-GOOD TIMES! 94 torn up and closed in sections for two years or more!

Just build a damn light rail in the middle/along of I-94 from Detroit to Metro Airport. Simple