Lex-Lincolnland Express

If you want a 5 hour bus ride down to Champaign (as opposed to the usual 3), this it the bus for you.
Oh and sometimes their buses even break down!
It’s awesome because then you have to wait another hour for another bus to come by and pick you up.
But then, the cargo doors lock down so your bags are trapped in the bus until they fix it and then allow you to pick up your luggage.

The bus picked me up and arrived on time to Chicago. Still, it was 4 hours in a car, 1 hour of which we were circling campus picking up students. I was hesitant to embark on my journey back.
I bought my ticket the day of my return bus, and it stated the bus would arrive at 6:00 and drop us off at 8:45. The perfect time! It actually arrived at 6:10 due to bad weather (not a big deal), but then we started down I55 (not the way to campus). at 8:45 and nowhere near home, I asked the driver what was happening. He told me he isn’t due in Champaign until 10pm. I told him he must be mistaken because my ticket said 8:45. He insisted he stopped at ISU first, then would proceed to Champaign. I was furious. I called customer service but they too told me that it was scheduled to come in at 10. It was as if no one was hearing me. I understood now that I would arrive at 10pm, but why did my ticket say I would arrive at 8:45? I would have never bought it otherwise.
The girl on the phone, a minimum-​wage worker, couldn’t have cared less either. She said it was a new route, and told me to complain online to the owner, which I did in the morning (we got in at 10:30, 4.5 hours of driving on a bus, and I had such a migraine and had to go to work in the morning). I then get an automated response from Mr. Lex about buses being late. My bus wasn’t just late, it was re-​reouted at the confusion of its own passengers (I was not the only one confused about this timing, as others asked as well why were weren’t home yet).
I have traveled the world and even in developing countries the service is better, the rides are honest, and people seem to care. Not Lex. I will take Suburban express from now on, or, as I have been thinking about it for a while, buy a car.
If Lex cared at all, if the University of Illinois cared at all, it would shut down companies like LEX and CPM, THAT is what the Wall Street protesters are all about.

If i could give less than a star I would. I have taken this bus many times because it’s the only one that has late drop off times however, they are never on time, never apologetic and tonight I had a cramped van drop me off at a random hotel an hour away from my pick up point and she told me to get out of the van and wait here for another bus that wouldn’t be there for another 20 minutes (this was around 10:40 pm) and then she drove off never once saying sorry for the inconvenience. This company is ridiculous and they think they can treat people like crap just because they are a monopoly. Believe me LEX I will spread the word.

They changed my bus schedule TWICE from 7:40, to 8:30, to 9:50 because I was the only passenger going from Midway to Champaign. It turns out, on the 9:50, I was also the only

A really good company. Not only do they offer frequent buses at all hours of the clock but they have many different stops as well. Definitely a great bus service. Also, having done business with them over a charitable cause about six months ago, they are also very responsive to just about anything and will help one in any way they can. Great service to go to and fro Champaign and Chicago.

So just to update you guys — NO response whatsoever from the company.
I sent him another email that contained the link to all his HORRIBLE reviews on Unilocal

Oh, Lex. They have quite a reputation around Champaign. I have a few memorable experiences with them:
1.) My mom and I used to plan shopping days in Chicago, and we used to use Lex. Like others have said, it usually involved a random stop at a hotel parking lot in the middle of nowhere and we would switch shuttles and/​or drivers. Shady, awkward, inconvenient.
2.) My then-​boyfriend had an early flight in Indianapolis, and I booked him a ticket on a Lex shuttle because there were no other options for a 2 am departure. He was the only passenger, and the driver was a pregnant woman. As soon as they got on the highway, he noticed her head bobbing. He asked her if she was okay, and she told him that she was really tired and ASKED IF HE COULD DRIVE WHILE SHE SLEPT IN THE BACK. WHAT. IS. THIS. My boyfriend obliged (…) and drove the shuttle all the way to the airport. Hahahaha! When he pulled the shuttle in to the airport, the lady thanked him and was on her way.
3.) Yes, I have taken Lex even after that. I missed my Amtrak train at Union Station and needed to get to Champaign that day, so I called Lex. Lucky for me, they already had a shuttle on the way. There were a few other people, probably students, riding with me. I was sitting directly behind the driver and could see his hands and face in the mirror. During the whole trip, he had his cell phone in his lap or on the steering wheel and was texting. I mean, come on. I don’t even want to know what sort of subject matter caused a 50-​something guy to be glued to his phone like that. Just kidding, I totally tried to read the texts but couldn’t. I do know that he was an awful texter and driver. He kept veering out of his lane just a little whenever he was looking down.
Lex really needs to get their stuff in order and screen their drivers. And yes, their hub is also a jacuzzi showroom or something. It’s strange. The only good thing I can say about Lex is that I can usually bribe the driver to take me directly to my house instead of the hub. I’ve never taken the buses, only minivan-​type shuttles, so maybe those are better. I only take Amtrak now– I’d rather deal with long waits than crazy drivers.

1 star is too many for this crack-​pot operation, but Unilocal doesn’t offer a «negative star system».
One word to describe this company: Incompetence
At Willard Airport in Savoy, IL, they are rarely available to pick up passengers from the last couple of flights into town at night. This will leave you waiting for another taxi company to pick you up. I have also witnessed the Lex drivers being verbally combative towards other taxi companies since they (Lex) apparently «have the contract» at the airport. (which basically means they have the right to be in the terminal, but other taxi companies aren’t supposed to come inside)
If you’re happy to travel on their screwed-​up schedule, you’ll be fine. Their drivers are paid hourly, not by the number of customers they transport, so they basically leave whenever the hell they please as they will still get paid even though they don’t do their job.