The Connect Transit Board of Trustees authorized their General Manager to award a contract for completing a midlife overhaul of 11 buses. Five 2015 and seven 2016 New Flyer buses will be overhauled by Cummins Sales and Service of Normal.
The price of this contract is $1.46 million. $950,000 will be funded by the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT). $510,000 will be funded by the Federal Transit Administration (FTA).
Midlife overhauls have become common practice in the mass transit industry. Performing overhauls extends the life of buses, saves maintenance expenses, and reduces failures while buses are on routes. Midlife overhauls also provide new warranties on engines and transmissions.
“This is a common practice in the Mass Transit Industry to do midlife overhauls on these vehicles to make sure they are able to achieve their recommended fourteen years of useful life. We always try to make them last as long as possible. And this will insure that they are able to do that,” said Procurement Director for Connect Transit Brady Lange.
The Federal Transportation Administration (FTA) provides guidance for all types of transit equipment. The FTA requires fourteen years of life for these buses. Therefore, Connect Transit performs midlife overhaul services seven years into the vehicle’s life.
Cities asked Lange how it came to be that 2015 and 2016 buses were included in this contract and he responded, “They are the oldest vehicles that we have that have not had a midlife overhaul. We have some 2010 and 2011 vehicles that have received a midlife overhaul. The 2015s and 2016s are the oldest that have not.”
On May the 24 Connect Transit released a Request for Proposal (RFP) for these overhaul services. The Scope of Work for this RFP defined items that Connect Transit Maintenance staff had identified as needing to be replaced or refurbished. Vital components such as engines, transmissions and cooling systems will be replaced.
Connect Transit received three responses to the RFP. Cummins Sales and Service outbid both Complete Coach Works and Midwest Bus Corporation.
Connect Transit staff recommended that Cummins Sales and Service be awarded the contract. Cummins has completed similar work in the past for Connect Transit. Cummins repair technicians have also assisted in training Connect Transit mechanics and staff.
Locally Cummins Sales and Service is located at 450 W. Northtown Rd. in Normal.
New Flyer was founded in 1930 and is the largest transit bus manufacturer in North America. New Flyer is a subsidiary of NFI Group Inc. (NFI), one of the world’s largest manufacturers. New Flyer actively supports over 35,000 buses currently in service.
IDOT is funding this project through its Downstate Operations Assistance Program (DOAP). The Downstate Public Transportation Act was established by the Illinois General Assembly to provide operating funds to assist in the development and operation of public transportation services statewide. The act is commonly referred to as DOAP.
