Commuter bus ferries locals to Duluth and back

It could be described as a chauffeur service that takes you to work every day.

The Cloquet-Duluth commuter bus has been making twice-daily trips between the two cities for about 30 years. The service is operated by LCS Coaches in Cloquet and is appreciated by local residents who ride the bus to work in Duluth.

"It started when Don Panger was here," said Jeff Lane, president of LCS Coaches. "It was when the rideshare concept was going on, so we started the Cloquet-Duluth commuter bus option. Another reason why Don created the weekday service was that it gave us another bus on the weekends for chartering."

The route travels circuitously each morning through Cloquet and Scanlon, beginning at 6:30 a.m. with final stops at the Scanlon rideshare lot at 6:55 a.m. and the Esko exit convenience store at 7 a.m. It's a curious route that cuts through several neighborhoods, almost like the route was designed for the first riders of the commuter bus 30 years ago.

"That's pretty much how the route developed, picking up people who rode it," said Jack Lane, vice president of LCS Coaches and Jeff's brother. "It's a good service. It's never been a big moneymaker but the people who ride it appreciate the service."

On a recent Wednesday morning when the temperature was minus-18 degrees, there were plenty of available seats with just three riders hopping on.

"The first time I rode it about eight to 10 years ago, it was a full bus," said Karen McMillan, who got on at the Esko exit stop. "I remember looking for an empty seat." McMillan has been a daily rider for the past two years.

"I gave up my expensive parking through Essentia in the parking ramps when they changed my hours," said McMillan. "I could never take it regularly when I worked four 10-hour days. I had taken it a couple times on snowy days so I knew about it, but now I ride it daily. No winter driving, our bus driver is great, and the hours work out. I've told other people about it and even patients could use it. This is a lot more relaxing than driving."

The Covid-19 pandemic has affected ridership numbers, but the commuter bus still operates daily.

"Covid pretty much took a hard hit on ridership," said Jeff Lane. "Covid just slimmed it down. We would start the route in the morning, and if no one got on by our last pickup at the convenience store at the Esko exit, we would turn it back."

"I think people working from home had a big effect," added Jack Lane. "But there's lots of things people could use the commuter bus for. Basically, it could be an employee shuttle for a large employer in Duluth. People could also use it for medical appointments, too."

"We try to use the bus on the return trips to pick up groups who need to get somewhere during the day," explained Jeff. "For example, we may drop off an athletic team on the afternoon trip to Duluth before we pick up the commuters. We even have hauled freight on the trips between Cloquet and Duluth. Moving a bus up and down the road is good exposure, it's like a form of advertising."

Dede Ruhnke of Esko was another rider on the recent Wednesday morning bus run and she gives the service high praise. She has been riding the commuter bus for about a year-and-a-half.

"The parking lot was condemned where I work in downtown Duluth and I wasn't sure where I'd be parking, so I thought I would try the bus," Ruhnke said. "I wish I would have done this years ago. I had driven to Duluth more than 20 years. It's convenient, warm, I don't have to deal with the weather, and we have a great driver. I recommend it 100 percent."

Larry Dybvig of Cloquet has been driving the daily commuter bus for about 16 years. He is a veteran commercial driver who has logged more than 4,000,000 miles behind the wheel.

"I used to have more than 20 daily riders, more on bad weather days," said Dybig. "I like the people, I get to know them pretty well ... about their families, where they need to be, when they need to be there."

Dybvig also explained it just makes sense to ride the bus.

"You can't drive your car for as cheap as you can ride this bus," said Dybvig. "Parking can run $10 to $12 a day, plus gas, wear and tear on the car, maintenance, it all adds up. The regular riders swear by it, they buy their passes and don't have to worry about having cash every day. You can sit in comfort on the bus, read the paper, drink your coffee, and arrive at work rested, especially on the bad weather days."

The Lane brothers anticipate making changes to the commuter service, but there is no timetable in place right now.

"We need to switch the vehicle, maybe to a transit van like a Mercedes Sprinter that gets better mileage and is around one-quarter of the cost to operate," said Jeff Lane.

Some Duluth employers offer incentives for people who ride group transportation like the Cloquet-Duluth commuter bus and McMillan encourages potential riders to look into it.

The commuter bus runs Monday through Friday, except on holidays. One-way fares are $4 and a discounted 40-ride pass is available. The morning and afternoon schedules and routes are posted on the LCS Coaches website at lcscoaches.com.

What does driving really cost?

It's getting more expensive to drive a car.

According to the American Automobile Association (AAA), the average driver spent almost $10,000 to own a car in 2021.

AAA has researched and analyzed data related to vehicle costs since 1950 and shares the findings in the auto club's annual publication "Your Driving Costs."

The annual average cost of $9,666 for 2021 is a $105 increase from the average in 2020. It's a bigger jump from 2019's average of $9,282, but AAA acknowledges changes to its methodology for the 2021 calculations, so it's harder to make direct comparisons over the years.

In 2021, the AAA average ownership costs per mile were 64 cents for a driver traveling about 15,000 miles during the year.

That means a typical 50-mile roundtrip between Cloquet and Duluth costs a driver about $32, using the AAA averages from 2021. Add in a downtown parking fee and the trip gets into the $40-42 range. In contrast, a ride on the LCS Coaches' weekday commuter bus is $4 each way, or $8 total, plus multi-ride punch cards offer a discount.

The AAA averages are based on the driving costs for nine vehicle categories, ranging from small sedans to sport utility vehicles to pickup trucks to hybrid and electric cars, and are weighted by sales.

AAA's analysis covers popular-selling vehicles equipped with standard features. The review takes into account ownership factors including depreciation; insurance, license, registration and taxes; maintenance, repair and tires; sales tax; finance; and fuel.

Fuel costs were based on average prices for the 12 months ending May 21, 2021, as reported by AAA at http://www.GasPrices.AAA.com. Regular grade gasoline averaged $2.362 per gallon during this period and electric vehicle charging costs were based on 13.1 cents per kilowatt hour. Fuel economy was based on Environmental Protection Agency ratings.

AAA publishes the "Your Driving Costs" estimates to help consumers make informed vehicle purchasing decisions and budgeting for annual automotive expenses. Actual driving costs may vary based on driving habits, location, operating conditions and other factors.