Show Bus

{{Short description|Provider of mass transportation in Central Illinois}}

{{Infobox Bus transit

| name = SHOW Bus

| logo =

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| founded = 1979

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| locale = Chenoa, Lincoln, Pontiac and Watseka

| service_area = DeWitt, Ford, Iroquois, Kankakee, Livingston, Logan, Macon, Mason and McLean counties in Illinois

| service_type = Bus service and demand-response service

| alliance =

| routes = 6

| destinations =

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| hubs = {{Unbulleted list

| Chenoa: Chenoa Family Restaurant

| Pontiac: City Hall

| Pontiac: Livingston County Health Department

| Pontiac: Walmart

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| website = [https://www.showbusonline.org/ SHOW Bus]

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SHOW Bus is a provider of mass transportation in DeWitt, Ford, Iroquois, Kankakee, Livingston, Logan, Macon, Mason and McLean counties in Illinois, with six deviated fixed-routes serving numerous cities, as well as demand-response service across the counties.

History

Public transit has existed in rural Central Illinois since at least 1891, when the Lincoln Electric Street Railway Co. began operating streetcar service in Lincoln. Streetcar service was operated locally in Lincoln and Pontiac until 1929 and 1925 respectively, when both cities had their streetcar systems replaced with buses.{{cite web|url=https://www.chicagorailfan.com/aatil2.html|title=Transit Systems in Illinois:Medium Size Cities|access-date=August 31, 2023}} In 2020 and 2022, SHOW Bus and Kankakee County received two grants as part of Rebuild Illinois to replace vehicles and upgrade a vehicle storage facility.{{cite news|url=https://www.daily-journal.com/news/illinois/county-receives-state-grant-for-show-bus/article_ad374d56-34c9-11eb-a227-1fd7646e325b.html|title=County receives state grant for Show Bus|date=December 3, 2020|author=Chris Breach|newspaper=Daily Journal|access-date=August 31, 2023}}{{cite news|url=https://www.daily-journal.com/news/local/1-06-million-grant-to-expand-show-bus-reach/article_3243f946-8abd-11ec-a0f0-e3c260285cb4.html|title=$1.06 million grant to expand Show Bus reach|date=February 14, 2022|newspaper=Daily Journal|access-date=August 31, 2023}}

Service

SHOW Bus provides deviated fixed-route and demand-response services. There are 6 deviated fixed-routes, where three provide intra-city transit in Lincoln, Pontiac, and Watseka while the remainder serve intercity trips in the region. As of August 2023, one routes is temporarily suspended. All routes run weekdays only and have a regular fare of $2.{{cite web|url=https://www.showbusonline.org/Riders.html#services|title=Riders Services|access-date=August 31, 2023}}

=Local routes=

Lincoln Limited Stop Service
Pontiac Limited Stop Service
Watseka Limited Stop Service

=Intercity routes=

Kankakee-Momence Limited Stop Service (serves Kankakee, Sun River Terrace and Momence)
Livingston-McLean County Intercity Service (Suspended temporarily, serves Pontiac, Chenoa, Lexington, Towanda, Bloomington and Normal)
Route 24 Limited Stop Service (serves Piper City, Chatsworth, Forrest, Fairbury, Chenoa and Pontiac)