By: Diane Benjamin
Nashville Tn. is a lot bigger than Bloomington-Normal and growing rapidly. Their transit system serves around 1.9 million people, including areas outside of the City.
Their system is publicly owned but managed by a private company. I have a friend who escaped Illinois to Nashville. He sent this pic:
Nashville’s bus system uses small buses for connector routes where a large bus isn’t needed. Novel idea – common sense too.
The bottom line is still ridiculous, in 2017 they had an operating loss of $85,390,148, in 2018 it rose to $89,740,425. At least the smaller buses aren’t destroying the roads the way Connect Transit’s huge buses do. They don’t show receiving federal money, they do get a lot from local funding: in 2018 – 48,635,900, 2017 – 42,013,600. http://www.nashvillemta.org/PDF/Nashville-MTA-Financials-2017-18.pdf
Now compare those losses serving 1.9 million people to Connect who serves around 133,000 at most. $47 per person in Nashville. Connect budgeted a loss of $13.1 million for this year. That’s $98 per person.
The Nashville transit system also serves most middle and high schools. Unit 5 could eliminate their bus problems by using Connect Transit instead. Obviously the buses have room.
Meanwhile, for May Connect Transit lost $929,287. Health Insurance alone was $105,413. $17,500 was spent on a consultant. Fixed route passengers per hour dropped from 26.31 in April to 20.01 in May Connect Mobility was down too. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1LpdtQZOgK3teuvVYMmby3kGCgN3SduUM/view
The Pantagraph reporter must have attended another meeting last night. She reported the City “pledged” to provide more money to offset Mobility Fare increases. No vote was taken, the City Manager simply said he thinks the board would support an increase in funding. https://www.pantagraph.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/city-pledges-financial-help-for-connect-mobility-riders-if-fares/article_0cece251-03ec-57c7-8234-a22f2b925fa8.html
Personally, I would vote NO until Connect right-sizes the buses and can actually say how many people ride. With transfers, their numbers are fictitious at best.
Proving incompetence yet again, tonight Connect wants to hire a facilitator to lead the Working Group. That means a person capable of steering the discussion where they want it to go without being obvious about it.
One more note: At the Council meeting Jenn Carrillo and Jeff Crabill tried to amend the Connect Transit resolution. They both lost big. 6 members of the Council had some sense. Mboka was absent.
Why would Bloomington want to do anything that someone else was successful at, being major city in the U.S.A. I am sure our city government has this transit problem under control. If I remember right the transit company is getting close to a million dollars a month from the people of Illinois
and federal money
In addition, a combined total of about $2M annually of local tax dollars from Bloomington and Normal.
WOW! A handicapped bus AND a passenger bus ALL -IN-ONE, so there’s NO SEGREGATION, making “handicapped” people special!! What a GREAT ideal, of course it’ll NEVER fly here, because our MAYOR and his LEFT HAND BO, don’t like great ideals!
Less road wear, less gas, better to drive down STREETS AND MISS BICYCLISTS, can turn around on the spot-in case of road closure. What’s NOT to like about these busses mr R. C. McBus??
Hmmm…
1) Hire a ‘facilitator’ to stifle/steer the voices of the disabled to fit what CT wants
2) For the same money, give away 5000 Connect Mobility rides
I wonder which one would better address riders’ concerns?
I wonder which one CT will do?
But Nashville is still losing big money, In 2017, 85m and 2018, 89m. Less loss per capita maybe but I wouldn’t call it a shining example by any means. If not for the size of the city and shear volume of additional riders in a small proximity, I’m guessing Nashville would be losing even more money. Excuse me but for these two cities it’s just an overall bad idea unless the goal is to lose money of which in relation to wealth transfer is probably the case. Using the disadvantaged to bankrupt the citizens and further impoverish those same disadvantaged is nothing new.
Remember when airlines went to regional jets to save money? They could not fill up MD-80’s with 100+ passengers for cities like BMI. They got smart and the exact situation exists here. The only difference is if Connect Transit were an airline with its’ passenger load they would and should end up like Eastern, Northwest, TWA etc. Even government subs couldn’t keep them in business.
Excellent analogy
I suggested this years ago ,, larger buses on circular main runs like between high travel points , adjoined at transfer points that use smaller neighborhood buses . .back in the 60s buses were smaller and all met at the square . Knew most of the drivers too . and they used tokens coin and transfer paper .
Am not saying you are wrong but from what I have seen there is no need for larger busses on any route. Okay maybe ISU route….but why should the taxpayer help subsidize a plum deal that ISU cut with them. We already subsidize their school in taxes covering 6 figure spiked pensions. The students and ISU should pay the same as those few who do ride. If ISU does not like it I suggest they run their own busses (gee….that would be like the school districts have to do).
But….but….but…..it’s for “The Children”! (So they can save more of their “student loan” money for a 2 week romp in Florida next January.)
Do people actually realize that you can spend your student loans on absolutely anything you want?
Go to Hell, Bernie!
What’s really sad is that Bloomington/Normal transit used to be,a long long time ago,the perfect example of what a public transit system should be: a role model if you will. Then the liberals got ahold of it and poof that was the end of role model.
Actually Nashville does receive both federal and state money, a significant amount. Nashville has 2 different agencies for transit if anyone wants to read the data they provided to the Federal Transit Administration you can find it at the following addresses or look it up for yourselves. http://www.transit.dot.gov/site/fta.dot.gov/files/transit_agency_profile_doc/2017/40004.pdf