By: Diane Benjamin
A reader sent this pic yesterday. The driver was across 2 lanes for a long time on College Ave:
At the 4/23 Board meeting Connect Transit General Manager David Braun stated that if the electric grid ever went down they wouldn’t be able to charge their electric buses.
Hey David: If the electric grid goes down nobody will be riding buses because we will be back in the STONE AGE. There won’t be anywhere to go! Businesses won’t be open, got extra groceries?
Last time I checked only 2 of their 12 were running anyway. The emails I received by FOIA didn’t show much hope of getting the others operational anytime soon.
Braun is now looking at owning a grid with solar panels. Of course grants will be needed. Cue up the money printing presses that make inflation worse.
Just hit Play below. I believe the speaker is Ryan Whitehouse the Chairman of the CT Board. He is not jumping right now because of the fiasco electric buses have been. They had to return to their old diesel buses because most of the electric buses are inoperable.
Jump to 1:07:30. Board member Julie Hile is on board because she never met a government project that didn’t need to happen. She wants to protect Connect from third party suppliers by generating their own electricity (to charge buses that don’t work!)
According to PDF page 17, five more electric buses were ordered in June of 2023: https://connect-transit.com/file/2335/General%20Managers%20Presentation_04%2023%202024_FINALXX.pdf
David Braun canceled this order with Protera, he is now looking at diesel buses. He claims he has a warranty on the 12 buses they already own. (Good Luck!)
Meanwhile the operating loss for March was $1,318,489. PDF page 8 https://connect-transit.com/file/2313/04%2023%202024_Board%20of%20Trustees%20Meeting%20Packet.pdf
Ridership numbers for March of 2024 show an increase over March of 2023. PDF page 9: https://connect-transit.com/file/2313/04%2023%202024_Board%20of%20Trustees%20Meeting%20Packet.pdf
Now look at the ridership numbers pre-covid. The reports were not the same as now.
PDF page 20-21: https://connect-transit.com/file/208/April%202020%20Board%20Meeting%20Packet.pdf
Fixed route ridership is still lower than it was in 2019: (210,221 then, 200,572 now)
Mobility, the most expensive rides, are much higher in 2024 (9,869 now, 7,958 then)
Meeting video:
The important thing is that Julie Hile is able to sit as vice chair of the Connect Transit Board AND still bill Blo/No municipal governments for services thru her consulting company relating to ‘vision’ plans.
Grifters gonna grift !
It’s who you know, not what you know.
Connect Transit acknowledges that electric buses have failed but will waste more money on solar and battery storage for charging useless electric buses? There’s something missing here, and it’s called common sense. No matter how great solar charging is made to appear (*just like electric buses were*) it is useless if what it is supposed to charge does not work. (why would someone even have to say this?)
Blinded by virtue. A poem by AI
In virtue’s light, we wander blind,
Noble deeds can obscure the mind.
Balance grace with wisdom’s sight,
For too much virtue dims the light.
Does Julie Hile even know how electricity from solar panels is distributed (unless you have GIANT battery storage capacity)? Solar panels are connected to the power grid. The electric companies act a “electricity banks.” With current technology, here is no way solar panels can produce enough electricity to charge all of the EVs CT plans to use.
The Hile Group is the consultant for Normal’s Vision 2050…enough said.
Do Tell, Julie Hile is a national expert on public transportation. But, don’t take my word for it, ask Julie. Connect is quite fortunate to have her expertise guiding their board to ensure sustainable green energy transportation that will save our planet. If more people would ride Connect buses we could reduce our carbon footprint in half. Either that, or they could buy bicycles from Vitesse Cycle Shop. But that according to Julie’s expertise, would require an underpass in Uptown Normal to make bicycle transportation even possible. We did after all fund a survey and needs assessment from the Hile Group to get a government grant for the underpass therefore we have to build it. The grant never would have been possible without Julie’s help. Julie’s guidance serves the diverse population of BloNo with inclusive and equitable transportation for all. You just don’t understand. According to Julie, Connect is not supposed to be profitable because it’s a government program. I’m sorry you don’t appreciate the sacrifices she makes to bless our community with her service. Our community needs more forward thinking leaders like her. You and I have a moral and sacred obligation to pay our taxes to fund Julie’s recommendations. It’s our civic duty. Sounds to me like you and Julie need to have a community conversation. I seriously doubt someone like you even bothered to attend Vision 2050 in Uptown the other night to understand what our community really needs. The time for solar is now.
Somewhat off topic…..but the buses in blono are so utterly stupid it defies logic!! We’re still in the free state of Florida and you see Collier Area Transit buses all the time. They’re half or less the size of BloNo’s. Wouldn’t it make lots of sense to have twice as many buses half the size?? Even they would probably be only partially full but it would provide double the service.
It’s no wonder folks that can are flocking the Florida from Illinois, NY, & NJ. No state income tax. Property tax is HALF my Bloomington tax on a house worth TWICE as much! Sales tax about the same. And a governor that believes in law and order. No Hamas riots here!!
Sorry all for my rant…..but what the Marxist Dems are doing to our country is maddening.
One of their EV buses has weirdly been parked at a business lot on the east side of Carlock for several months now. I keep wondering why it’s sitting in a lot in Carlock… did it break down somewhere around Carlock?? And if so, then WHY was a B-N city bus driving around Carlock??
Oh, also, CT is hiring, so maybe that’s a new driver in your picture. ;D
For all the doubters out there, EV buses are hot!
And any EV can and does catch on fire. What happens when an EV catches on fire in a crowded parking garage? Sprinklers won’t put it out. Firefighters won’t go into a place where explosions from gas powered cars could happen.
It’s another thing about EV’s that people don’t want to think about until after the fact.
The solution for the dead electric buses is simple. Tow them to different parts of town and make them housing for the homeless. Put a wall in the middle and you have two nice brand new apartments!