# Lorain County Transit

Lorain County Transit (LCT) is a public transportation system in Lorain County, Ohio, United States. Robert Wickens, Board Chairman in the 1970s, successfully led the effort to begin fixed route transit service in the county. A division of the Lorain County Commissioners, LCT's headquarters are located in downtown Elyria.
LCT originally operated several fixed bus routes, majority of which served as a terminus near Midway Mall in the county seat of Elyria. A second terminal for some of the routes were in downtown Lorain, as "Meridian Plaza". Additionally, LCT operated connecting paratransit service serving Oberlin, Amherst and Avon. Many of the routes had been discontinued on January 14, 2010 as a result of funding shortfalls.
In addition to servicing the county's various localities, LCT also provided a few intra-county bus routes; an express route connecting Oberlin and Elyria to Cleveland Hopkins International Airport, which was discontinued on June 1, 2009 due to funding shortfalls. This route was funded primarily by Oberlin College. Since fall 2005, LCT had provided supplemental service to the airport for the college's vacations and holiday breaks. In spring 2009, this supplemental service was provided on 47-55 passenger motorcoaches owned and operated by Brecksville Road Transit. LCT also provided an express bus route from Elyria to the RTA park and ride lot in Westlake.
On September 10, 2012, LCT launched the Cleveland Commuter express route that operated from Elyria to Downtown Cleveland, but was later discontinued on August 16, 2013 due to low ridership.
In July 2024, LCT launched "ViaLC", a demand-response microtransit service under partnership with Via Transportation providing service within Elyria and Lorain.
On August 16, 2024, LCT supported the city of Oberlin to launch the Oberlin EBus Loop, a fare-free fixed bus route making several stops across the city, with half of the funding provided by the city of Oberlin and operating under contract by Slidr, using electric shuttle buses.
As of 2018, LCT currently operates 5 fixed bus routes bi-hourly on weekdays. Service is currently not provided on weekends or on holidays.

## Other services

In addition with the fixed routes, LCT also operates a demand-response dial-a-ride service along with an "Oberlin Connector" service, the latter of is required to have their trips begin and/or end within Oberlin's city limits, along with Dial-A-Ride services. LCT also operates demand-response microtransit service under partnership with Via Transportation providing service within Elyria and Lorain.

## Fares

Oberlin Connector, ViaLC, and all fixed routes cost $2 for a one-way trip. Dial-A-Ride service outside of Oberlin costs $9 one way. Seniors, children, disabled, and Medicare card holders can receive a discount of $1, while veterans and children 2 and under can ride for free. Transfers to other routes are also free of charge upon request. Monthly and all-day passes are also available.
Riders on fixed routes, Oberlin Connector, and Dial-A-Ride must provide exact change in cash upon boarding, while ViaLC accepts both cash and card.
The now-defunct Cleveland Airport Express route costed $6 one-way, with student discounts available at $4. Transfer tickets or monthly passes were not accepted. The now-defunct Cleveland Commuter route fare was $4.25 each way.

## Routes

Current routes :
| Route No. | Destination | Notes |
| Loop | Downtown Elyria Loop | Some select buses stop at the Port Authority Complex Some buses connect with routes 51 and 52 Operates weekdays only |
| 1 | Lorain/Elyria via Washington | Operates every 2 hours, weekdays only Free transfer available to route 51 without ticket required. |
| 2 | Lorain/Elyria via Broadway | Operates every 2 hours, weekdays only Free transfer available to route 52 without ticket required. |
| 51 | East Elyria/Broad Street Loop | Operates every 2 hours, weekdays only Free transfer available to route 1 without ticket required. |
| 52 | East Elyria/Abbe Road Loop | Operates every 2 hours, weekdays only Free transfer available to route 2 without ticket required. |
Defunct routes :
| Route No. | Route Name | Terminals | Terminals | Notes |
| 3 | Sheffield Lake/Abbe Road | Elyria Transfer Point | Meridian Plaza in Lorain | Operated Monday-Saturday Formerly provided a transfer point to route 55 |
| 11 | North Ridgeville/Center Ridge Road | Elyria Transfer Point | RTA Connection (Lorain Road & Barton Road) | Operated weekdays only |
| 21 | Oberlin / Wellington | Elyria Transfer Point | Downtown Oberlin (South Pleasant & East College Streets) Downtown Wellington (South Main Street & West Herrick Avenue) | Operated bi-hourly to Wellington on weekdays Operated daily to Oberlin, making several in-demand stops across the city. |
| 31 | Cooper Foster Park Road / North Ridge Road | Elyria Transfer Point | Super Kmart in Lorain | Operated Monday-Saturday |
| 32 | Cleveland Clinic, Lorain/Amherst Loop | Elyria Transfer Point | Cleveland Clinic in Lorain | Operated weekdays only Transfer to routes 31, 41, & 42 at Super Kmart Westbound direction operated via Cleveland & West Martin Avenues Eastbound direction operated via Cooper Foster Park Road |
| 33 | Cleveland Hopkins Airport Express | Downtown Oberlin (South Pleasant & East College Streets) | Cleveland Hopkins International Airport | Also stopped at the Park & Ride lot in Elyria Connection to the RTA Rapid Transit's Red Line Originally named Cleveland Link and formerly Cleveland Connector Direct service buses operated to/from Oberlin and the airport for the college's holiday breaks, special events, and beginnings and ends of semesters. Discontinued on June 5, 2009 |
| 41 | Oberlin Avenue | Meridian Plaza in Lorain | Super Kmart in Lorain | Originally named West Lorain Loop |
| 42 | West Erie | Meridian Plaza in Lorain | Super Kmart in Lorain | Terminus at the now-defunct Super Kmart One of the routes to not terminate at the "Transfer Point" stop in Elyria |
| 43 | Central / West Lorain Loop | Meridian Plaza in Lorain | | One of the routes to not terminate at the "Transfer Point" stop in Elyria Begins began and ended at Meridian Plaza. Operated hourly on weekdays only |
| 53 | West Elyria/West Ridge Road Loop | Transfer Point in Elyria | | Operated Monday-Saturday |
| 55 | Avon Lake / Avon Commons | Abbe Road & Lake Road | | Operated Monday-Saturday Transfer point to route 3 at terminus |
| 70 | Westlake Express | Transfer Point in Elyria | Westlake Park-N-Ride | 6 trips in both directions on weekdays only; 3 morning trips to Westlake and 3 evening trips to Elyria Stopped at the Park & Ride lot in Avon, near the corner of Chester Road & Middle Street (OH-83) Connection to RTA bus routes to Downtown Cleveland LCT proposed to extend this route to downtown Cleveland but did not come to fruition. |
| Commuter | Cleveland Commuter | Lorain County Port Authority Complex (limited service) Lorain County Transportation & Community Center | West Side Market & Public Square | Express route operated 4 round trips on weekdays only Also stopped at the county's Board of Elections lot Route launched in late 2012 but later discontinued on August 16, 2013 due to low ridership |