Riding bus to Whitewater a 'no-brainer'
Photo
A worker boards a Janesville city bus at Generac Power Systems in Whitewater on Wednesday. The route from Janesville to Whitewater started April 29.
Photo
Chris Olin
Photo
Alexis Mielke
Photo
Steven Scott
Photo
Thaddeus Minnis
JANESVILLE — It's a no-brainer.
That's what two people said earlier this week as they rode a Janesville city bus to their jobs at Generac Power Systems in Whitewater.
The service started April 29 after Generac offered to help pay for it to assure employees had a reliable way to work.
This week, the company sponsored a week of free rides, hoping to encourage ridership.
Similar bus service from Janesville to UW-Whitewater proposed last year did not become a reality after students voted against sponsoring it with student fees.
Several riders interviewed Wednesday said this week's ride-free promotion has convinced them to ride the bus more.
Regular riders interviewed said they ride to save money on gas and wear and tear on their vehicles. They reduce their chances of getting in accidents and don't have to worry about driving in bad weather. If the bus breaks down and they are late for their jobs, it doesn't count against them.
The riders read books, chat or relax before and after their jobs.
Buses leave Janesville at 5 a.m., 1 p.m. and 9 p.m. to coincide with Generac shifts. Buses collect riders from Generac and pick up others along Milton Avenue, at the Janesville Mall and Walmart. The buses stop in Milton and along the route in Whitewater, as well.
Six riders left Janesville at 1 p.m. Wednesday headed for Whitewater. Two more boarded in Milton.
There had been more riders, those on the bus said, but Generac recently let some temporary workers go.
Chris Olin, Janesville, didn't need the encouragement of a free ride to take the bus Wednesday, although she was happy to get it.
Olin has been a regular rider since the route began. Her husband drops her off at the transfer center in downtown Janesville for the 1 p.m. bus.
When Olin rides the bus, she frees up a family car and saves on its wear and tear. She figures the bus will be "awesome" in the winter.
Another plus? "I am guaranteed not to get picked up for speeding," she said with a smile.
William Hamby—an ex-military man who smiled when he said he's used to mass transit—lives at the edge of Janesville and catches the bus in Milton.
He's been riding the bus since the route began, saving 1,000 miles a month on his car. He has a Chevrolet Tahoe, a vehicle not known for conserving gas, and he figures the $22.50 he pays each week to ride the bus is half the $57.50 it would cost if he were driving.
"That's a no-brainer," Hamby said.
Riding free this week is a bonus, he said, and with a daughter ready to go to college, every penny counts.
Alexis Mielke and Steven Scott, both of Janesville, rode the bus for the first time this week because of the free-ride promotion.
Usually, Mielke carpools. She had thought the bus was too expensive.
Now that she's thought it through, she said it probably
isn't, especially when considering the wear and tear on vehicles.
She relaxes and reads a book on the drive and figures she'll be riding the bus more.
Scott, Janesville, got on the bus at Walmart. He said he would probably ride it more now that he is familiar with it.
Riding the bus is easy, Jaime Onofre said. He doesn't have to worry about his car breaking down and won't have to scrape windows in the winter.
Jim Ames, Milton, said he takes the bus because it's a "whole lot easier. I can sleep on the way."
Thaddeus Minnis, Janesville, has taken the bus since the first day.
Riding the bus frees up a car so his girlfriend can get to work. Normally, he relaxes and reads a book, knowing he is paying $36 a week (riders get one ride free if they buy 10 rides at a time) instead of the $100 in gas his truck would devour.
"I see it as a total positive," Minnis said. "I don't understand why a lot more people don't use it."
Price of tickets covers fraction of route cost
Riders pay $4 one way to get to their jobs at Generac Power Systems in Whitewater, but in May the total cost for each of those rides was about $40.
The service started April 29, and expenses through December are expected to total about $128,310.
Fares are forecast to generate about $19,248.
Generac and the city of Whitewater chip in $41,058, and the state and federal governments pay $68,004.
The intent is for the federal and state governments to pay about one-half the cost of the service, Generac and Whitewater to pay about one-third and fares to cover the rest, said Dave Mumma, Janesville's transit director.
In May, 402 people rode the Janesville-Milton-Whitewater bus. Mumma estimated at least two-thirds of the riders were Generac employees.
The $128,310 cost for eight months averages to $16,039 per month, meaning the cost for each of the 402 rides in May was about $40. That assumes all riders paid to go to Whitewater from Janesville or from Janesville to Whitewater.
Mumma said the parties would reevaluate the success of the service at the end of the year.
Any shortfall in the amount raised from fares would be made up by Generac and Whitewater, meaning the city of Janesville would not be left with any cost, Mumma said.
To meet the monthly revenue goal of $2,406 from fares, the service would need about 600 rides a month.
Mumma compared the route to the Janesville-Beloit route, which started slowly but now runs every hour.
The Whitewater route schedule, which is intended to match Generac shifts, might be hurting ridership, Mumma said.
If ridership increases, a route could be added with a more typical schedule, but that route would have to find another sponsor, Mumma said.
"We hope over time that we might be able to add additional trips," he said.
When asked why the city couldn't serve six riders with a van instead of a bus, Mumma answered: "Seventy percent of the cost is sitting in the driver's seat."
That cost would be the same whether the driver is driving a bus or a van.
"It's a brand new service, and, like anything that's brand new, it takes a while to ramp up," he said.
"We think we're headed in the right direction," Mumma said. "Anything new is going to have a higher unit cost to start with. We believe and we hope that over time that's going to come down as more people use the service.
Fares eventually should cover 15 percent of the cost, Mumma said. Fares cover about 18 percent of the cost for the popular Beloit-Janesville route, he said.
Public transit is not expected to make money, Mumma said.
Jun 20, 2012 at 12:03 p.m.
Suggest removal
Generac is actually in Jefferson County , is there another CITY bus route that runs 2 counties away .
Jun 19, 2012 at 9:12 p.m.
Suggest removal
First off..... this article is pure BS. The funding for this bus route comes from numerous sources Federal Government, taxes, Generac, the employees/general public who use this service...etc. etc. This service is not only open to those who work at generac, ANYONE CAN RIDE IT. Currently, the routes time are set to run with Generacs hours because those are where the riders are going for the majority. Once more riders start, they will be able to fund more regular routes. The drivers wages and benefits are public information and can be found on the city webpage. The drivers driving this this route are part time drivers. They do not have any benefits. They are only allowed to work 29 hours a week due to union contract. In actuality wages and the cost for the month rounding up is 2,300 a month. The route runs 40 hours total in one week. You do the math.... the drivers don't make much given the amount of responsibility there is involved in transporting humans lives, using a government vehicle, and quite frankly watching out for other drivers... cause as a professional, you are expected to never have an error on the road. If they do, so help the driver, the whiney little daydreamers on the road will be sure to call the driver in. The cost is in insurance for the vehicle and the City of Janesville in the event they should need it because the world is so sue happy. The rest is in fuel, maintenance of the bus, mechanics wages to work on the equipment (not just anyone can fix these things, the worker must be skilled and have knowledge), passes, advertising the route, etc. etc. In order to move forward and attract new companies into the area, our infrastructure is a major part and needs to be efficent and accessible.
Jun 18, 2012 at 12:35 p.m.
Suggest removal
"JANESVILLE — It's a no-brainer."
Wow...out of the mouths of babes, and bus riders! I couldn't have put it better myself. Perhaps the city council should consider this as their official motto? I'm getting the bumper sticker printed right now!
Jun 17, 2012 at 7:07 p.m.
Suggest removal
Generac had a hiring rush paying temps $8.00 hr worked the people mandatory overtime and weekends , they filled there warehouse locations , pushed for the bus , and ounce they was filled and they got the bus , Lay Off's and Department closings slow downs , No seniority to go to different shifts , No call back rights . Seems like the bus is just good advertising for a company that is using up WORKER POOL of people in a limited area . and that is what it is .
Jun 17, 2012 at 3:51 p.m.
Suggest removal
Not arguing about need for UC, just the knee-jerk reaction of automatic entitlement and apparent "poor me" reaction when a week is taken away.Why can't people stand on their own two feet? When my son was laid off he was "entitled" to UC but chose not to draw because he could get by without it. Although he shorted himself for a few weeks, he did get by. I admired his values.
No, I'm not HR, not management. With our kids grown, I'm working and in a union. When I said "we" paid off the mortgage, it was because my husband and I are in it together. Our mortgage was paid early owing to his hard work and my watching dollars as an-home mom who used cloth diapers, breastfed, shopped garage sales, gardened, and made homemade meals. One car. So yes, it was "we" who paid off the mortgage - one income but two people working hard together to spend the money wisely.
You are right - 8 people on a bus isn't wise. But there should be far more than that, don't you think? How many are driving solo when they could be riding? The goal is a wise one.
Jun 17, 2012 at 2:28 p.m.
Suggest removal
and where you say "we" did the same ....i "me" did it with just my income . Don't get confused , UC is paid in BY LAW from the company's we work at . Having a bus travel 23 miles one way from Janesville to Whitewater for aprox 8ppl doe not make good sense to me .
Jun 17, 2012 at 2:12 p.m.
Suggest removal
All that talk and still no explanation of why UC should not be paid out to hard workin folk....you are management probly even HR .
Jun 17, 2012 at 1:13 p.m.
Suggest removal
Uncle Jesse,
It's all part of incorporating mass transit into our lifestyle. Why should 50 people regularly drive 50 cars/trucks/SUV gas guzzlers to a distant city to work for the same company when they can all be picked up by a bus? In the long run, it saves money and gas. Or it will once the system is used properly. If you don't understand that, I doubt I can explain it.
As for UC, read your history. The unions came about because of management's greed. But no one is immune to greed, including unions. I applaud you for your hard work through the years, for paying off your home. We did the same. But we're in this economic mess because of greed, greed of unions, of management, of bankers, and of citizens who want it all now without working for it.
Please don't automatically call people stupid for expressing an opinion that might differ from yours. You're smarter than that.
Jun 17, 2012 at 11:37 a.m.
Suggest removal
Emily23: that really sounds like management thinking or just plain stupid , they are very closely related ....but you can try to explain .
Jun 17, 2012 at 11:30 a.m.
Suggest removal
Whining ?............lol....well UC insurance has been around my entire life , In the UC pamphlet they state that the individual earns it . And after 30 yrs of working enough to pay off my home i believe it also . Emily you don't sound very intelligent saying you like the bus program which tax payer are footing the bill wheather they ride or not, but don't think UC is good where the company's you work for pay in weather any one collects it or not ?.....lol.....
Jun 17, 2012 at 10:57 a.m.
Suggest removal
Kudos to those responsible for implementing this program. May need some improvements but it is a good start. Hope more take advantage of it. To those whining about not being paid during layoffs, why should you be paid for not working?
Jun 17, 2012 at 10:13 a.m.
Suggest removal
billnewbie - You did not factor in employment benefits, vehicle insurance, federal and state taxes, health insurance, workman's compensation, uniforms, and paid time off -- along with soft costs like the time spent training a new hire.
-
To employ someone, an employee can cost the employer 40% more than their base pay.
-
Regardless, it is not a cost effective program by any means.
Jun 16, 2012 at 3:46 p.m.
Suggest removal
Let's see, $16,039 per month is the actual cost of providing this service. 70% of which is wages and benefits for the driver(s) for 3 round trip runs a day which takes about 8 hours total. That's $11227.30 monthly labor costs which at about 180 hours a month comes to a little more than $62 an hour for the driver(s). Either Mr.Mumma, Janesville's transit director, badly misstated the costs that do not include labor, or Janesville's transit system is paying extremely generous wages and benefits to its bus drivers. At $11227.30 per month, these drivers would make $134,727.60 a year! So what's the truth? Is Mr. Mumma a rather poor spin doctor, or are we paying our bus drivers as if they were airline pilots????
Sure, mas transit isn't intended to make money. But does Mr. Mumma really think that's justification enough for it costing 10 times more per rider than the $4 fare????
Jun 16, 2012 at 3:45 p.m.
Suggest removal
Let's see, $16,039 per month is the actual cost of providing this service. 70% of which is wages and benefits for the driver(s) for 3 round trip runs a day which takes about 8 hours total. That's $11227.30 monthly labor costs which at about 180 hours a month comes to a little more than $62 an hour for the driver(s). Either Mr.Mumma, Janesville's transit director, badly misstated the costs that do not include labor, or Janesville's transit system is paying extremely generous wages and benefits to its bus drivers. At $11227.30 per month, these drivers would make $134,727.60 a year! So what's the truth? Is Mr. Mumma a rather poor spin doctor, or are we paying our bus drivers as if they were airline pilots????
Sure, mas transit isn't intended to make money. But does Mr. Mumma really think that's justification enough for it costing 10 times more per rider than the $4 fare????
Jun 16, 2012 at 2:11 p.m.
Suggest removal
My husband works at Generac though he does not take the bus. But I did want to send out a GREAT BIG THANKS to Scott Walker. He took credit for creating so many jobs at Generac. Yet now the temps are gone..and they are laying off for a Week in July UNPAID of course. Pathetic!
Jun 16, 2012 at 11:16 a.m.
Suggest removal
Bus wont have many people riding the first week of July through the lay off and there is talk of another lay off the week of labor day . Thanks to to Scott Walker we wont be paid that first week of lay off .
Jun 16, 2012 at 10:55 a.m.
Suggest removal
carlitosway - perhaps you missed it in the article. ---> "the state and federal governments pay $68,004."
So the WORKERS fare is not covering it all.
-
And also, yes people want others to work so they get off state aid... What is the point when they still receive state aid via transportation funds? State is still paying these deadbeats. I consider anyone who receives anything from the state a deadbeat.
Jun 16, 2012 at 10:27 a.m.
Suggest removal
A bus is a ploy to widen the gap between the working poor and rich factory owners? I'm trying to decide what makes more sense, that statement, or filling your gas tank with water.
Jun 16, 2012 at 10:01 a.m.
Suggest removal
If Generac paid decent wages, their employees would be able to afford reliable transportation. This is just another Republican ploy to widen the gap between the working poor and rich factory owners. Way to go Walker, lets keep the poor people down.
Jun 16, 2012 at 8:17 a.m.
Suggest removal
"FAIR SHARE IN TAXES....."
Carlito, please explain what you mean. I have heard this, from the President on down, and no one can give an answer.
Jun 16, 2012 at 7:49 a.m.
Suggest removal
BTW to all the complainers this was a promotion and the WORKERS pay to ride. So it is not on your dime that they get to work for a little less then it would cost them buying the BIG Corporations GAS.Most people have a 2 adults working household just to get by and maybe make ends meet, many of them do not have the luxury of 3 car garage with 5 cars.. As they have to pay their FAIR SHARE IN TAXES.....
Jun 16, 2012 at 7:34 a.m.
Suggest removal
ozzman99 Well said. It seems the same ones that support the GOP and their giving the rich more and more in tax breaks and STATE AID for their companies cannot see anyone but the wealthy getting a break in life. (Diane Hendrick"s ABC RING a BELL?) I am so sick of all the GOP and their TEA Baggers, HATE to the ones that WORK for a living God forbid that someone can"t aford to make ends meet and needs a little help to GET TO WORK. The whole bunch of the Whiners in here have no problem with Scooter and the GOP robbing this country blind giving everything to the BIG Companies and rich people who have never given back only demand more and more of OUR TAX MONEY. BTW to all you who see this as taking your money Where do you think Walkers gets his money to give to ABC and Koch companies and the rest of those that BUY OUR COUNTRY.. WELL it is tax payers money toooooooooooo. You know YOUR tax dollars.
Jun 16, 2012 at 1:01 a.m.
Suggest removal
If you drive a car in the United States, you are the beneficiary of an average $5000 per year transportation subsidy. That goes to streets, roads, interstates, and other car infrastructure, not to mention tax credits for oil production and distribution, which push the subsidy even higher.
.
etown, I presume, then, that you are driving to work only on private land that you yourself own, and not using anything paid for by anyone else, such as a street. Since I paid for part of that street, too, if you use it I would hope you would appreciate what I and everyone else has given you.
.
crisblue, Whitewater has a page but Janesville only has press releases. Technically this isn't JTS -- Janesville is only providing the bus and driver.
http://www.uww.edu/adminaffairs/parking/...
Jun 15, 2012 at 11:18 p.m.
Suggest removal
im offended that my tax dollars are paying for people to go to work . i d be even more offended if i lived in whitewater because those people are paying twice. i get no deduction or pay for driving to work , so why in the world should it be given to them . and wisconsin is in debt because ? could you imagine if we gave every company this option .
Jun 15, 2012 at 10:45 p.m.
Suggest removal
where can you find the route times and dropoff areas? i looked for a jts website and couldnt find it
Jun 15, 2012 at 10:24 p.m.
Suggest removal
Public transit is not expected to make money, Mumma said.
Dont tell that to a tea bagger. You republicons amaze me, you complain about people not working and then you complain because many of these people who want to work but dont have a ride get help getting to work and yet none of you complain about the huge taxpayer subsidy that funds the rock county airport which mostly handles private aircraft.
Jun 15, 2012 at 8:27 p.m.
Suggest removal
Those elected to office in Madison like fitz get paid to drive to work so why worry about the litte guy getting a ride
Jun 15, 2012 at 7:10 p.m.
Suggest removal
I've often asked why vans wouldn't work when our city buses run around 80% empty! I think if the city would buy everyone cab fare; it would still be cheaper!
I'm glad this reporter asked about using a van. The answer is suspect: Mumma claims that 70% of the cost is in the driver's seat. Let's see, the article said that cost for the last 8 months to run this bus was $16,000 a month. 70% of that would be $11,000. So that driver is costing the company $134,000 a year? Really!? Really?! I think someone's playing with the numbers to keep that government money flowing in!
Jun 15, 2012 at 6:22 p.m.
Suggest removal
"the state and federal governments pay $68,004."
-
So along with welfare, and all the other free handouts the state and govt give, now I have to pay for other peoples' rides to work too?
-
If several other cities around the state are doing this, how many millions of our tax dollars are going to this? And why dont they just cut the gas tax if all they are doing is collecting tax and then putting it back into it??
-
That diesel bus thats geared for the city has got to suck the fuel...Be nice to know how much fuel the JTS uses annually. And how many passengers there are on average. I always see buses with just a couple people in them. Waste.
Jun 15, 2012 at 5:28 p.m.
Suggest removal
If you build it, they will come.
Before you post a comment, consider this:
Note: GazetteXtra.com does not condone or review every comment. Read more in our User Policy AgreementPost Comment
Commenting requires registration.