Expanded bus service will provide more options for workers at Canal Park businesses and is expected to free up some parking spaces.
Beginning Monday, the Duluth Transit Authority will add 15 trips a day to its existing Park Point route to serve the Canal Park business district. Currently, buses run along Lake Avenue, but the new service will operate on Canal Park Drive.
The change will help meet the transit needs of Canal Park employers, particularly Customer Link, said Mayor Herb Bergson and DTA executive director Dennis Jensen, who announced the additional bus service this week.
Bergson said the change was a result of the first business tour he had with the Duluth Chamber of Commerce at Customer Link. At the time the company was in the process of doubling its work force.
"It's a direct response to a request by the people of Customer Link for better and more bus service," he said. "It's not a big thing in the big picture of economic development of Duluth but one of those great partnerships that the DTA wanted to be part of immediately."
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Jensen said when they learned there was an interest in having more bus service in Canal Park, they reviewed their operations and recognized an opportunity. He said surveys showed in addition to Customer Link, other businesses had a similar need.
"We were overwhelmed by the response we got from some hotels and restaurants," said Jensen. "They have employees who actually walk back downtown to take the bus."
The DTA believes the new service will be more convenient and match up with many Canal Park work schedules. The district has seven hotels, 15 restaurants and more than 50 shops and businesses. Customer Link alone has about 230 workers. A company spokesman said about one-third of them currently ride the bus, and they hope to see that number increase.
The service will provide a late evening connection back to the University of Minnesota Duluth for student workers. Employees at the DECC will also be able to use the new service by crossing the Minnesota Slip Bridge.
The Park Point bus now provides hourly service from 6:15 a.m. to 6:25 p.m. The new service means there will be two trips each hour for most of the day, with hourly service in the evening.
Jensen said the new service will use buses that currently lay over at Fitgers and will cost the authority about $1,000 a month. The new bus stop signs were scheduled to go up Friday.
This weekend, DTA buses will start hauling bicycles again. The bike racks have been put back on the buses and are available for rider use at no extra charge.
