Rockford Mass Transit District

{{Redirect|RMTD|text=For the transit agency in Southern Illinois, see Rides Mass Transit District}}

{{Infobox bus company

| name = Rockford Mass Transit District

| logo =

| logo_size =

| image = RMTD_bus.jpg

| image_size = 250

| image_caption = A RMTD bus at the downtown transit center in 2022

| company_slogan =

| parent =

| founded = February 15, 1971

| commenced =

| ceased =

| defunct =

| headquarters = 520 Mulberry Street
Rockford, Illinois

| locale =

| service_area = {{plainlist}}

Rockford, Illinois
Loves Park, Illinois
Machesney Park, Illinois
Belvidere, Illinois

| service_type = Bus, Paratransit

| alliance =

| routes = 30

| stops =

| destinations =

| hubs =

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| lounge =

| depots = 2

| fleet = 40 buses

| ridership = {{American transit ridership|IL Rockford total daily}} ({{American transit ridership|dailydate}}){{American transit ridership|dailycitation}}

| annual_ridership = {{American transit ridership|IL Rockford total annual}} ({{American transit ridership|annualdate}}){{American transit ridership|annualcitation}}

| fuel_type = Gas, Diesel, Diesel-Hybrids, and Fully Electric

| operator =

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| leader =

| website = {{URL|https://rmtd.org/|rmtd.org}}

}}

The Rockford Mass Transit District is the public transportation operator for the Rockford metropolitan area, Illinois. Service is provided six days per week along 19 routes, with several of these routes being combined into five Sunday routes that service a large portion of the system. The core of the system is contained in The City Loop (Route 16 clockwise and 17 counterclockwise), which interconnects with every other service. In {{American transit ridership|annualdate}}, the system had a ridership of {{American transit ridership|IL Rockford total annual}}, or about {{American transit ridership|IL Rockford total daily}} per weekday as of {{American transit ridership|dailydateasof}}.

History

File:RMTD bus logo.png

File:RMTD0003Front.jpg{{Expand section|Information from 1971 to 2020|date=October 2024}}

On April 20, 2020, RMTD reduced its daily routes after six employees, including five drivers, tested positive for COVID-19.{{cite news |title=RMTD reduces routes after 5 drivers test positive for COVID-19 |url=https://www.rrstar.com/news/20200418/rmtd-reduces-routes-after-5-drivers-test-positive-for-covid-19 |access-date=30 March 2021 |publisher=Rockford Register Star |date=April 18, 2020}}{{cite news |title=Rockford Mass Transit District announces changes to service |url=https://www.rrstar.com/news/20200420/rockford-mass-transit-district-announces-changes-to-service |access-date=30 March 2021 |publisher=Rockford Register Star |date=April 18, 2020}} The district later received a $9.3 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation as part of the CARES Act.{{cite news |title=More than $9M to Rockford Mass Transit District for COVID-19 response |url=https://www.wifr.com/2020/07/01/more-than-9m-to-rockford-mass-transit-district-for-covid-19-response/ |access-date=30 March 2021 |publisher=WIFR |date=July 1, 2020}}

In August 2020, the pre-COVID-19 route system resumed{{cite news |title=Rockford Mass Transit District service returns Aug. 3 |url=https://www.wifr.com/2020/07/27/rockford-mass-transit-district-to-return-to-service-aug-3/ |access-date=30 March 2021 |publisher=WIFR |date=July 27, 2020}} and RMTD launched Token Transit, a mobile fare app that allows passengers to purchase bus passes on their cell phones.{{cite news |title=RMTD introduces new mobile ticketing app |url=https://www.masstransitmag.com/technology/fare-collection/mobile-applications/press-release/21149565/rockford-mass-transit-district-rmtd-rmtd-introduces-new-mobile-ticketing-app |access-date=30 March 2021 |publisher=Mass Transit Magazine |date=August 10, 2020}} The app displays a digital bus pass or ticket on the phone's screen, eliminating the need for a paper pass or cash.

On June 15, 2023, RMTD unveiled six new battery-electric buses, the first electric buses in the fleet. The buses will replace diesel buses from 2007, reducing carbon emissions by 4,500 metric tons annually. RMTD plans to have a fully electric fleet by 2036.{{cite news|url=https://www.wrex.com/news/rmtd-unveils-first-fully-electric-powered-buses/article_c8d659a6-0bb5-11ee-b024-a7c546f90954.html|title=RMTD unveils first fully-electric powered buses|date=June 15, 2023|author=John Jurgens|newspaper=13 WREX|access-date=June 21, 2023}}

Facilities

The Downtown Transfer Center, located at 501 West State Street, is the primary hub for the RMTD, serving 14 routes. The center opened February 11, 2019, replacing an earlier transfer facility at the same location. The transfer center provides riders with restrooms, vending machines, an indoor waiting area and a location to purchase tickets and passes. {{cite news |title=Rockford Mass Transit opens doors on renovated downtown bus station |url=https://www.mystateline.com/news/rockford-mass-transit-opens-doors-on-renovated-downtown-bus-station/ |access-date=27 June 2022 |publisher=My Stateline| date=February 11, 2019}}

The East Side Transfer Center, located at 725 North Lyford Road, opened in 2012, serving buses and riders on the east side of Rockford with 4 routes. The transfer center provides riders with restrooms, vending machines, an indoor waiting area and a location to purchase tickets and passes. {{cite web | title= Rockford Mass Transit District East Side Transfer Center | date=26 August 2014 | url=https://architizer.com/projects/rockford-mass-transit-district-east-side-transfer-center/ | access-date=27 June 2022}} In addition to serving RMTD buses, Greyhound Lines intercity buses also stop here.{{cite web|url=https://www.greyhound.com/en-us/destinations|title=Destinations|access-date=September 5, 2022}}

Fixed route ridership

The ridership statistics shown here are of fixed route services only and do not include demand response. {{cite web | title=The National Transit Database (NTD) | url=https://www.transit.dot.gov/ntd | access-date=January 15, 2023}}

{{#invoke:Chart | bar chart

| group 1 = 1475160:1350373:1273117:1318215:1445028:1554541:1788823:1584178:1595189:1702918:1817660:1804937:1761303:1708638:1633818:1559308:1561371:1488879:873980:734246:829612:1042785

| units suffix =

| group names = Annual ridership

| x legends =2002: : :2005: : :2008: : :2011: : :2014: : :2017: : :2020: : :2023

| colors = #{{rcr|Metra|Rock Island}}

}}

References

External links

[http://www.rmtd.org/ Official website]

Category:Transportation in Rockford, Illinois

Category:Bus transportation in Illinois

Category:Transit agencies in Illinois