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Transit director reports about 77,000 rides in Q4, details service changes and vehicle updates
Summary
Transit Director Calabria Petrino told the Macomb City Council committee the system logged roughly 77,000 combined fixed‑route and demand‑response rides in the fourth quarter (IDOT FY25), reported reasons for trip denials, outlined driver recruitment and training, and noted a planned engine purchase for Bus 60 and potential IDOT grant use for heavy‑duty buses.
The Macomb transit system recorded roughly 77,000 combined fixed‑route and demand‑response rides in the fourth quarter, Transit Director Calabria Petrino told the City Council committee on April 1.
"Total between the 2 for quarter 4 was, 77,000, a little over," Petrino said, summarizing the ridership figures included in the quarterly packet filed with the committee. The report used the Illinois Department of Transportation fiscal calendar (IDOT FY25), meaning the city's internal fiscal year lags the IDOT reporting period by about a month.
Petrino described operational metrics including peak vehicle deployment (eight vehicles on the road at peak for combined services) and the primary reasons for demand‑response trip denials: requested times not available, lack of drivers, or unavailable out‑of‑county service days. The director said the city approved ordering a new engine for Bus 60 on Aug. 18 and is awaiting an estimated time of arrival from Cummins for the replacement unit.
Service changes tied to Western Illinois University (WAU) included new or adjusted routes that began Aug. 25: main campus routes labeled Blue, Purple and the Leatherneck Express, plus evening and late‑night routes and a library shuttle. Petrino outlined staffing progress: four new CDL drivers were hired (two currently running routes, two in training) and two demand‑response drivers were in training.
She also described ongoing work on financial reporting sent to IDOT and potential use of an IDOT heavy‑duty bus grant, along with funds allocated for demand‑response and fixed‑route scheduling software.
Committee members thanked Petrino for her work; the chair noted Petrino had personally driven a route to ensure service continuity while staffing stabilized. No formal action was taken; the report was presented for committee review.
