Pace's purple Pulse express starts Sunday, with the ability to 'catch green lights'

CHICAGO (CBS) -- Get ready to see distinctive purple buses riding through the northern suburbs starting Sunday.

They're part of Pace's express service called Pulse.

One thing that makes them different than others: They can magically change a stoplight from green to red.

CBS 2's Marie Saavedra has the story.

"When the bus is coming through, it will hold the green longer."

Pace Executive Director Melinda Metzger is excited about the new Dempster Pulse route. It runs from Evanston on the east to O'Hare on the west.

Fifty minutes from one end to the other. That's 15 minutes shorter than the traditional Pace service.

Listen to this bold promise:

"They'll be faster than a car, taxi, Uber. Because they can change the lights along the way."

The new purple buses don't replace the regular blue buses on the Dempster route.

But the Pulse ones will run more often. Every 15 minutes. Not only will the wait be shorter, it will be more comfortable for riders.

"We're in Chicago. Winters are cold. The shelters are heated. The ground is heated to melt the snow and ice. There's a marker behind me with real-time info about when the next bus will appear," Metzger said. 

This is the second Pulse route. CBS 2 told you about the first one back in 2019. The hope there was to increase ridership by 1,00 a day.

The pandemic ruined all that. But Metzger is not giving up on her mission.

"We're good for the environment," she said. 

Especially this summer, we've all been bombarded by images of fires from Hawaii and Canada. Sweltering heat in the southwestern United States.

Climate change is real. Getting people out of their cars is necessary, even in the suburbs.

"Our goal is to get people to try this. They're really going to like this. In the suburbs, we didn't have the frequency. Now we do," Metzger said. 

The cost? About $10 million to set up the Pulse route, including the souped-up 15 stations.

Metzger maintained we can't afford not to make the investment.

"We build it right; they will come," Metzger said.  "Second, my answer is we have to do it for the environment. Have to get them out of the car," Metzger said. "At this point in history, we have to get them out of single occupancy vehicles."

For now, the service will be Sunday only. That's in part due to a bus driver shortage. So Metzger is making the hard sell not just for new riders but new drivers as well.

Pace has weekly hiring events where you can get a job on the spot. The hope is to have the Dempster Pulse service running daily by the end of the year.

Another Pulse route in the works could run from Harvey to 95th Street.

In:
• Pace Bus