Starting in June, a nonstop bus service between the Duluth and Minneapolis St. airports that provides one-way rates starting for as low as $9 will be launched.
The company behind the service, known as Landline, will be providing its lowest rates to customers who will then be flying to their chosen destination via a partner airline of the company. Per David Sunde, who's the company's co-founder, the company currently has an agreement with an airline. And although Sunde didn't enclose which airline it is, he was quick to say that it's a low-cost provider.
Per the company, the first trip that will depart for Minneapolis will be on the 4th of June, and a full schedule of all the four trips that will go in each direction will be available the day after it. A service similar to it will also begin on the 6th of June in Mankato, Minn. The earliest trip will leave Duluth at 2:20 AM while the last trip will be at 5:10 PM.
According to Sunde, "Customers will need to book early and before the buses are all filling up. Instead of having one price point like a typical ground carrier would, we're able to have several."
That's because the company's lowest rate will be considerably less than the existing transit options. For example, the lowest one-way option that they offer for Jefferson Lines is just $25, while the lowest option for the Groome Transportation shuttle just clocks in at $44. Per Sunde, the company's highest fares would be comparable to Jefferson's, and these higher rates would be for the passengers who will ride an airline that's not the company's partner.
In a news release from the company, the buses will feature in-seat power, free Wi-Fi, and leather seats with ample legroom.
David Sunde and Ben Munson, who started Landline in Minnesota, are both longtime business associates in Santa Monica's aviation industry. After various months of research (which includes an extended road trip last spring), the couple decided to start the company. Per the two, there are currently a lot of cities that are in a "one- to three-hour drive of that big airport," meaning that starting this kind of business in a place with this kind of geography and pricing makes a lot of sense.
