IL: Decatur debuts new electric hybrid buses

Public transportation in Decatur has gotten a little cleaner.

Two new Decatur Public Transit System electric hybrid buses hit the road along the popular Martin Luther King Jr. Drive and Water Street routes, replacing older, gas-guzzling diesel buses. It brings the total number of hybrids in operation to four.

The buses, made by California-based Gillig, do not require charging and can operate fully electric for up to 200 miles per day. They are fueled by B20 biodiesel.

In an effort to reduce the impacts from emissions, Decatur Public Transit plans to operate the buses fully electric within higher-populated areas.

The agency expects to deploy another three electric hybrid buses in the near future.

It is just the start of a larger transition for the city's transportation system. But plans have long been in the works.

In 2022, the city was a awarded a nearly $17 million federal grant and has received nearly $10 million in state grants that kickstarted the transition from traditional diesel-powered buses toward hybrids and, eventually, full electric buses. The city's goal is to have a zero-emissions bus fleet by 2040.

The funds are also being used to overhaul of the city's transit facilities, which will include the installation of rooftop solar panels and retrofitting in anticipation of the transition to electric.

Last year, the city proposed reducing the number of fixed-route bus lines from 16 to 10, truncating and streamlining them to focus on the city center and connections to the city's major commercial centers. Routes in areas of low ridership would be eliminated, though gaps would be filled by implementing what is known as "micro-transit."

Changes would also include extending fixed-route service to 8 p.m. and increasing frequency on popular routes to every 15 to 20 minutes on weekdays and 20 minutes on weekends.

A key cog in making this new system work is the concept of micro-transit, a "first mile, last mile solution" utilizing smaller branded vehicles to take riders from a designated stop near their homes to either stops near their final destinations or to fixed-route buses that could be used to complete their trips.

Those changes would need to be approved by the city council.

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