By: Diane Benjamin
Connect Transit is the biggest FRAUD ever perpetrated on the citizens forced to pay their bills!
Before I show you the offensive February financial statements, see these notes included in the packet: http://www.connect-transit.com/documents/March%2021,%202017%20Regular%20Board%20Meeting%20Binder1.pdf
See PDF page 17 of the link above. The General Manager can spend up to $50,000 without Board approval.
$50,000 is more than half of their monthly Operating Income:
Ridership – Year to Date
Page 8 shows Total Revenue Year-To-Date of $917,875. That means the 1,496,760 riders paid less than .62 per ride.
See page 14. Appointments have been made to their Community Transportation Advisory Council. Only one isn’t listed as a Connect Transit rider, but he is from Mid Central Illinois Community Action.
Elections have consequences!
Since both the current Bloomington and Normal Councils support this lunacy, how much lunacy are they also supporting in their Towns? Both City Managers are on the Board: http://www.connect-transit.com/about/trustees/default.asp
Maybe the Pantagraph will do an investigation!
At least that’s what they claim to do:
YES! Complete insanity! Curious as to when peak ridership is and how many equals peak. Perhaps weekend nights hauling 10-12, ISU kids back and forth to the bars?
Keep in mind that “infrastructure” includes CT and all of the shelters, among other things, not just roads and sewers. I wonder how much of the $24M allocated for infrastructure in the Proposed FY2018 Budget will be sent to CT. It is my understanding the Down State Public Transportation grants are being fazed out.
Johnson is getting 135K from Champaign Mass Transit and they are gong to issue a consulting contact with him? Hasn’t be already beat Bloomington-Normal out of enough money already? Working for two transits, isn’t there some kind of conflict of interest. He drove Connect Transit into the ground and almost broke, what next.
Surprised? Looking at their numbers it shouldn’t.
Connect is robbing us blind! No new busses!!!! They need to be shut down!
Maybe he is trying to hold on to that $500.00 a month car allowance. Has anyone noticed that at least 4 of the management positions are vacant, yet their names are still listed on the wedbsite. That is because Johnson didn’t want anyone to see what is really going on at CT.
Lock the doors and throw away the keys! It is beyond crazy why anyone would continue to throw money at CT. Does the board ever look at scaling the operation back vs. continuing to see how to milk the system for more?
Obviously not.
Mileage due to empty buses driving in circles so sad. Should shutdown this debacle! Convert to Uber or lift service. Let Isu develop a service to handle their students.
This is BEYOND insanity! It’s basically stupidity. Just look at how MUCH money EACH month is being wasted while our roads are in such shape as they are. NO wonder the state is broke-people like this get advanced into “better” jobs where their destructive talents can grow and develop in todays society.
Does anyone ever consider the insane amount of wear and tear these beasts (the empty buses) inflict on our roads? Now would be a GREAT time to consider downsizing this operation. Smaller buses; fewer smaller buses, even better; or outsource it – take your pick. I’m sure the cost/benefit to future road maintenance would be net positive.
Mind you… I am an Anarchist, so advocating how government should do something is rather laughable to me, but if ever there was anything the government created that should pay for itself, it is running a bus line.