The Oberlin Connector, an affordable, on-call shuttle bus service that runs from Oberlin to anywhere in Lorain County, has changed its hours for 2024. It will now be available from 6 a.m.–9 p.m. Monday through Friday. According to Carrie Porter, Oberlin director of planning and development, the bus removed its second shift from 9:30 p.m.–12:30 a.m. because of a lack of demand for late-night hours.
The shuttle is available by reservation and costs $1 for students or senior citizens and $2 for everyone else. After budget cuts in Lorain County cut off public transportation to Oberlin in 2010, community members pooled money to create and fund the Connector. Since then, the bus has been steadily increasing its hours to help Oberlin residents without cars get to and from work. According to Porter, the bus annually sees around 4,000 to 4,500 trips. Many residents have reported positive experiences.
“We’ve gotten a lot of positive feedback on expanding the system so [residents] can get to work,” Porter said. “It’s an affordable way for people to do the things they need to do in life and to get a job.”
Porter also mentioned the importance of having public transportation to help people make it to medical appointments.
“We found out once we expanded the system that there was a huge pent up demand to get to … the big medical systems,” Porter said. “It’s a lifeline for a lot of people. If you can’t drive, what do you do?”
The shuttle also provides Oberlin students a way to connect with parts of Lorain County that they may otherwise not have the means to visit. College fourth-year AJ Singh frequently used the Connector as a first-year to get to Lorain for shopping and banking work. He mentioned enjoying the affordability of the Connector as well as the ease of use.
“I like that they were always on time because they scheduled in advance, and they came to pick me up where I was,” Singh said. “I also liked the affordability aspect. It was a dollar each way, which was nice.”
Singh also discussed the positive benefits of the Connector for both community connectivity and accessibility.
“I think it’s a really good service to have for students and people in the Oberlin and Lorain community,” Singh said. “Being in Northeast Ohio where you need to have a car because the infrastructure is so car-dependent, I think connector services like this are really helpful because there’s no regular public transportation.”
According to Porter, the transportation department is also looking to start a new, free fixed-route vehicle that runs primarily around Oberlin, rather than to and from places in Lorain County, and runs on a schedule rather than by reservation. They are planning to have electric vehicles for the fixed route and aim to have it running by late spring.
“What we’re looking toward doing now is creating a fixed route,” Porter said. “The fixed route would go just within Oberlin, and you can just hop on. You don’t have to schedule ahead of time like you do with the Connector, and it would be free.”
Porter is hopeful that the fixed route will alleviate difficulties getting around town while the bus is occupied.
The Oberlin Connector can be scheduled day-of or up to two weeks in advance by calling 800-406-7541.
