Connect Transit

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Connect Transit
A bus leaving Uptown Station in 2022
ParentBloomington-Normal Public Transit System
Founded1972
Headquarters351 Wylie Dr.
LocaleNormal, Illinois
Service areaMcLean County, Illinois
Service typebus service, paratransit
Routes16
StationsUptown Station
Fleet42 Transit, 19 Demand Response
Daily ridership6,300 (weekdays, Q2 2024)[1]
Annual ridership2,254,400 (2023)[2]
Fuel typeDiesel, Electric, Propane
Chief executiveDavid Braun
Websiteconnect-transit.com

Connect Transit, formerly Bloomington-Normal Public Transit System until 2012,[3] is the primary provider of mass transportation in Bloomington/Normal, Illinois. The system consists of 13 fixed routes, plus the Illinois State University Redbird Express, and two additional Express routes that operate on the busiest portions of the Lime and Red routes. In 2023, the system had a ridership of 2,254,400, or about 6,300 per weekday as of the second quarter of 2024.

History

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Gillig Phantom serving the Blue (E) route
Gillig Phantom serving the Redbird Express service
Gillig Low Floor serving the Lime (I) route

Until 1972, Bloomington-Normal was served by National City Lines. When the company left the region, the City of Bloomington and Town of Normal established an intergovernmental agency known as the Bloomington Normal Public Transit System, via intergovernmental agreement. The transit system operates as an independent agency governed by a board appointed by both the City of Bloomington and Town of Normal.[3]

Routes

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Connect Transit's buses run every 15, 30, or 60 minutes, depending on the route, time of day, and day of the week. Service is offered in the day and evening hours daily, although hours are reduced on weekends. Buses do not operate on New Year's Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving, or Christmas.[4] Basic adult fare is $1.25 with free transfers. 1, 7, or 30 day bus passes are available.[5]

Connect Transit has two main transfer centers. Uptown Station, located in Normal, is also served by Amtrak and by intercity buses. Eight routes have one terminus here. The other transfer center is two miles to the south, in downtown Bloomington. Nine routes have one terminus here. The Green, Red, and Lime routes serve both locations.[6]

The Olive route that ran along Normal's north side was eliminated on July 1, 2019, due to low ridership.[7]

Route List[6]

Route Name Northern/Western Terminus Southern/Eastern Terminus Interval (min)
Aqua Downtown Bloomington Greyhound & Southgate Daily
Blue Shoppes at College Hills Downtown Bloomington Daily
Brown Bloomington Walmart Uptown Station Daily
Gold Advocate BroMenn Downtown Bloomington Daily
Green Uptown Station Downtown Bloomington Daily
Lime Uptown Station Downtown Bloomington Daily
Lime Express Bloomington Walmart Downtown Bloomington Mon-Fri
Orange Downtown Bloomington Hamilton Rd & Merna Ln Daily
Pink School St & Northfield Dr Uptown Station Daily
Purple Downtown Bloomington Shoppes at College Hills Daily
Red Uptown Station Downtown Bloomington Daily
Red Express Uptown Station OSF Medical Group Mon-Fri
Redbird Express Cardinal Court Beaufort St & School St Daily
Silver Bloomington Walmart Downtown Bloomington Daily
Tan Uptown Station Central Illinois Regional Airport Daily
Yellow Heartland Community College Uptown Station Daily

Fleet

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Transit

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Fleet Number(s) Model Year(s) Manufacturer Model Length Engine Notes
301-311

(11 buses)
retiring

2003 New Flyer D40LF 40 feet (12 m) Cummins ISC
  • Ex-Champaign–Urbana Mass Transit District, purchased in September 2017.
  • 303 and 307 are retired.
  • 310 is retrofitted with a waiting room area in the back (seats 13), two booths for meeting space (seats 8), a television and a DVD player. It is known as the #GetConnected Community Bus and it was debuted in 2018 with the goal of utilizing the bus to hold voter registration drives, fresh food markets, reading literacy nights, mobile pop-up museums and more.[8][9]
1001, 1101–1104

(5 buses)

2010-2011 Gillig Low Floor 35 feet (11 m) 1001: Cummins ISL
1101-1104: Cummins ISL9
  • Numbered 90, 96-99 prior to rebranding as Connect Transit.
1002-1004

(3 buses)

2010 New Flyer D40LFR 40 feet (12 m) Cummins ISL9
1501-1505, 1601-1607, 1801-1810

(22 buses)

2015-2018 XD40
2101-2104

(4 buses)

2021 Proterra ZX5 35 feet (11 m) Electric

Demand Response

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Fleet Number(s) Model Year(s) Manufacturer Model Length Engine Notes
1701–1704

(4 buses)

2017 Ford
Champion 		E450
LF Transport 		26 feet (7.9 m) Propane
181-189

(9 buses)

2018 Ford
Starcraft 		E450
Allstar 		21 feet (6.4 m) Ford Modular 6.8L V10 Gasoline
201-206

(6 buses)

2020 Ford
Elkhart 		E450
EC II 		Ford Godzilla 7.3L V8 Gasoline

Fixed Route Ridership

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The ridership statistics shown here are of fixed route services only and do not include demand response. [10]

500,000
1,000,000
1,500,000
2,000,000
2,500,000
3,000,000
2006
2008
2010
2012
2014
2016
2018
2020
2022

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Transit Ridership Report Second Quarter 2024" (PDF). American Public Transportation Association. September 3, 2024. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  2. ^ "Transit Ridership Report Fourth Quarter 2023" (PDF). American Public Transportation Association. March 4, 2024. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  3. ^ a b "About Us".
  4. ^ "Holiday Service Schedule". Retrieved January 12, 2022.
  5. ^ "Connect Transit Fares". Retrieved January 12, 2022.
  6. ^ a b "System Maps". July 1, 2021. Archived from the original on 2018-07-10. Retrieved January 12, 2022.
  7. ^ "Connect Transit Delays Fare Hike; Scraps Olive Route". March 26, 2019. Retrieved January 12, 2022.
  8. ^ "#GetConnected Community Bus". Retrieved January 12, 2022.
  9. ^ "Connect Transit Fleet". Archived from the original on 2019-11-01. Retrieved January 12, 2022.
  10. ^ "The National Transit Database (NTD)". Retrieved January 15, 2023.
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Media related to Bloomington-Normal Public Transit System at Wikimedia Commons

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