Trying to get from Bloomington's east side to campus on the bus? There's a new option

Editor's note: This story previously listed an incorrect phone number for Bloomington Transit. The correct number is 812-336-7433.

Bloomington resident Dave Underwood said changes to the city’s bus service last week have turned his easy bus commute into an impractically long journey.

That's because Bloomington Transit combined two routes on the city’s east side and two on the city’s south side.

But the system also is expanding its agreement with ride sharing services, which, Underwood said, would address most of his concerns.

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Underwood had enjoyed using an east side fixed bus route to get to his job at Indiana University, where he works as a technology specialist. But that route, number eight, has been eliminated.

“I had a 20-minute bus commute. Now it’s over an hour,” he said. “A lot of the staff here at IU. … They’re not happy at all.”

Bloomington Transit eliminated Route 8 Eastside Local and has combined it with a reconfigured Route 3 East, which also is taking riders to the new hospital campus. On the city’s south side, the system has combined Route 1 South and Route 7 Express into a new Route 7: S Walnut/Clear Creek. 

Transit officials said they made the changes in response to a continued driver shortage and as a result of system improvements that have been discussed for years. For example, combining the two southern routes has enabled transit officials to reduce the remaining route’s intervals to 20 minutes while university classes are in session. It will otherwise run on 30-minute intervals.

Underwood said the eliminate of Route 8 required him to take a bus to the downtown transit center, transfer to a second bus and ride to his campus destination. That takes more than an hour and essentially eliminates any chance that he can ride a bus to work. He said the elimination of that route also makes it impractical for him and his wife, Irena, to ride the bus to eastside shopping destinations, such as College Mall.

However, starting Monday, the bus service will allow customers to ride with Uber or Lyft from 8:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday in the area that formerly was serviced by the Route 8 bus. The new area will run roughly from the intersection of East 10th Street and North Smith Road southwest along College Mall Road and South Sare Road to Olcott Park.

Riders, including those with a CrimsonCard and BT passes, will have to pay $1 per ride, and BT will cover the next $19.

People can order the rides using an app on their phones and entering a discount code or by calling the transit service’s main line, 812-336-7433. The area is geofenced, meaning only people who are physically in that area can use their phones to order the service.

Bloomington Transit has used the ride sharing services since this summer for late-night riders, as some late-night routes saw only a handful of customers, which BT officials said was not efficient enough, especially during a driver shortage.

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John Connell, the transit system’s general manager, said the driver shortage is “still a major challenge for us.”

The system recently was down about eight drivers, but Connell said two drivers just graduated from training and will be added to the roster. Another training class will start soon.

The system’s drivers got big raises this year: A new contract that took effect Jan. 1 bumped starting salaries 14% to $19.02. The contract also pushed up wages much faster than before, allowing a driver with four years of experience to earn $28.53 per hour in 2025.

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The switch to late-night ride sharing services also has freed up two full-time positions and has reduced costs, BT officials said. In July, the transit system spent $3,300 on the ride sharing services. If it had run late-night buses, it would have incurred costs over $25,000.

Underwood said he plans to use the east-side ride sharing services to get to work, though he has some mixed feelings about the ride sharing companies, as they don’t consider their drivers employees and therefore dodge paying them benefits.

In addition, he said, he’d rather have “a green choice” in a fixed bus route that carries many more passengers than a ride sharing service.

But, he said, he appreciates having an option other than to use a private vehicle.

“My wife would say it’s better than me buying a sports car,” he said.

Reach reporter Boris Ladwig at bladwig@heraldt.com.