City of DeKalb seeks state grants to purchase new transit buses, ADA-accessible van

DeKALB – DeKalb city leaders are throwing their hat into the ring vying for a pair of state grants to pay for capital costs related to public transit.

During the DeKalb City Council’s most recent meeting, officials adopted two resolutions authorizing the submission of an application for funding assistance for paratransit vehicles and another for fixed-route vehicles and equipment.

City Manager Bill Nicklas said there is an opportunity to participate in the Illinois Department of Transportation’s Consolidated Vehicle Procurement program funded by state and federal money that would pay for the cost of the city’s paratransit needs.

“We’d like to apply for that,” Nicklas said.

Through the grant, the city is seeking assistance from the state to pay for three new 14-passenger paratransit buses and one ADA-accessible mini-van.

The total cost for the vehicles is $287,000, according to city documents.

City officials also are requesting an assist from the state and the Rebuild Illinois infrastructure bill to fund the city’s fixed-route vehicles and equipment.

Nicklas said the city is eying the purchase of six new buses.

“These are the big ones that you see out there,” he said.

Nicklas said the cost of the new fixed-route buses coupled with softwares for scheduling, tracking and fleet maintenance and management equate to an estimated $5.4 million.

“It’s a good deal if we can get it,” Nicklas said.

Under the city’s current transit program, all the paratransit vehicles, cameras and some of the equipment are city-owned whereas the fixed-route buses and equipment are not, according to city documents.

Unlike Bloomington and Champaign – both municipalities in Illinois that serve as public fixed-route service operators –DeKalb contracts out the services and equipment used to drive its public transit system.

Nicklas described this arrangement as an “anomaly” considering the fact that the city’s public transit system receives federal funding and said something had to give.

“This is a long-term process to get us into a situation where we’ll be able to entertain more competition as we go along,” he said.