DeKalb public transit line expand service to Elburn beginning Oct. 7, industrial park route Oct. 28

DeKALB – Those looking for a quick trip to Elburn will be in luck when a bus line from DeKalb to the Elburn train station expands its service Oct. 7, and operates seven days a week.

The service will offer a morning trip once a day Monday through Sunday, and one once an afternoon, Monday to Thursday and Saturday, with fixed rates for children and Northern Illinois University staff and students. Children younger than 5 will ride free, NIU students will pay $6.25 a ticket, while faculty and staff pay $8.50. Tickets for the general public will cost $10.50, according to city documents.

The expanded service will operate in conjunction with two separate providers the city already works with: Transdev Services, Inc. and the Voluntary Action Center of DeKalb County, part of a Transit Development Plan created in 2017.

The cost to expand service for both entities will require a budget amendment, which was approved by the City Council on Monday.

The Transdev contract would increase from $3.9 million to $4 million in 2019, and from $4 million to $4.1 million in fiscal 2020, documents show.

Additional changes, set to beginOct. 28, include increased shuttle services to major employers in DeKalb’s industrial parks near Park 88. The new line, also approved by the council, will be called Route 19, which will operate five days a week.

The proposed new service will provide access to employers along Seventh Street, Fairview Drive, Macom Drive, Harvestore Drive and South 10th Street, documents shown through the city’s Transdev contract. Currently, the route is only offered through VAC.

The route will also go past a number of local elementary and middle schools, documents show.

To close out 2019, the additional Transdev line will cost the city $60,000 more, and will adjust the annual contract cost to $350,000 for the line in subsequent years, according to city documents.

Fare structure for Route 19 will be significantly subsidized through the Illinois Department of Transportation’s Downstate Operating Assistance Program funding, which will cover 65% of the cost, documents show. The remaining 35% will be split between the city and Northern Illinois University.