New schedules bring longer hours and increased frequency to weekday and weekend service
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, IL – Starting on December 8, 2024, many high-demand bus routes in Cook, DuPage, and Lake counties will see extended service hours and increased frequency on weekdays and weekends. These expansions are part of Pace’s commitment to strengthening its transit network and meeting the evolving needs of suburban riders across the region. Additional routes in Lake County will see more trips added on weekdays and Saturdays starting in early December.
Throughout 2024, Pace has made strategic investments to enhance service on routes with increasing demand. By expanding operating hours and improving frequency, Pace has demonstrated its ability to respond quickly and strategically to riders’ changing habits, a key factor in its consistent ridership growth over the past year.
“Pace’s nimble and responsive approach has served our riders well,” said Pace Executive Director Melinda Metzger. “Pace recently served the highest monthly total of riders throughout our entire system since the COVID-19 pandemic began, carrying more than 2 million riders this past October. Our Paratransit ridership already has surpassed pre-pandemic levels. Pace is reimagining our transit network to meet customers’ evolving needs, and our riders have responded accordingly.”
With overall ridership trending positively, more piloted service expansions also soon are on the way. Beginning on Sunday, December 8, Pace Routes 322, 350, and 364, which provide service in Cook and DuPage counties, will include additional trips, longer service hours, and increased frequency on both weekdays and weekends. Route 301, also in Cook and DuPage counties, will see more trips and longer service hours on weekends.
Also, effective December 8, Pace Route 563 between downtown Waukegan and North Chicago in Lake County will see new weekend service to better meet riders’ travel needs. Route 563 serves several key destinations in the area, including Naval Station Great Lakes, the Lovell Federal Health Care Center, and three separate Metra UP-North Line stations.
Effective Monday, December 9, Route 564 will see longer hours of service and more trips on weekdays and minor weekend service adjustments, providing increased opportunities for riders traveling between Washington/Sheridan in downtown Waukegan and Fountain Square in Waukegan. In addition, Route 565, which provides daily service from the Waukegan Metra Station to the College of Lake County campus in Grayslake, also will see three new trips added on Saturdays to strengthen service in the area.
Other service changes taking effect in early December will add a few more trips on weekdays and Saturdays along Routes 569 and 571 in Lake County. Route 855, an I-55 Express route from Plainfield to downtown Chicago, also will see an inbound trip start earlier in the morning, and Route 422 in northern Cook County will see trip times shifted. For more information on these and other service changes, visit PaceBus.com/passenger-notices.