Paul Comfort: Hey, did you start your day today with a great bowl of cereal?

Maybe some Frosted Flakes, some raisin bran?

Do you know where that cereal is made?

I.

It's made in Battle Creek, Michigan.

That's right.

And they've got a great transit system there that is actually in a big transition.

We're gonna tell you all about it today on Transit Unplugged.

I'm Paul Comfort, and I recently got to sit down with Mallory Avis, the public transit director for the City of Battle Creek, Michigan and Battle Creek Transit while we were at the Community Transportation Association of America.

CTAA Expo in San Diego.

We sat down right out on the trade show floor hosted by our good friends at TripSpark Technologies, and we interviewed her about something big happening there in Calhoun County, Michigan.

And that is that they're transitioning the transit system from a city department.

To a transportation authority.

That's right.

The voters voted to do that and they gave some money to do it as well.

We're gonna tell you all about that.

She'll tell you all about that on this interview and securing the additional funding they needed and what the process is of changing a transit system in serial city America from, uh, city operation to a standalone authority on this episode of Transit Unplugged.

All right.

We're in San Diego at the Community Transportation Association of America's Expo and uh, I'm Paul Comfort.

This is Transit Unplugged, the world's leading transit executive podcast.

I'm excited to be with Mallory Avis, who is the director of Transportation for the City of Battle Creek, Michigan, which is where we all get our Kellogg cereals from Mallory.

Mallory Avis: Indeed it is.

Yes.

So we're actually at the TripSpark booth right in the center of the hall with hundreds of people milling around.

U.S.

you're gonna hear a little background noise.

We love doing these live podcasts.

Mallory, tell U.S.

uh, a little bit about where you're from and give U.S.

about serial city.

Absolutely.

Mallory Avis: So, uh, you know, I was born and raised in Chicago, moved to Michigan as a teenager, and going from Chicago to rural Michigan was a huge culture shock.

So, went from somewhere where my grandma never had a driver's license, used the bus to get everywhere.

To somewhere where a car is required to go anywhere and your closest grocery store is about half an hour away.

Transportation has always been in my blood and I had the opportunity six years ago to go to the city of Battle Creek and run their transit department there.

So we've made some major changes to our system and we're excited about some of the things that are going on in Battle Creek.

That's great.

So tell U.S.

about Battle Creek.

All right, we gotta dive into this.

'cause as a kid growing up Yeah.

You always hear, you know, I'm getting my Kellogg's, whatever cereal I'm eating that morning, it's from Battle Creek, Michigan.

So give U.S.

a story on that.

Mallory Avis: Yeah.

So we are the breakfast capital of the world.

Okay.

Uh, our city logo even, you know, says Cereal city USA.

Oh, that's cool.

Our first transit system was actually called Serial City Coach Company back in the 18 hundreds, the old interurban days.

Nice and Mallory Avis: serial city coach company transferred over to the city of Battle Creek and the.

1970s and, uh, now we've been known as Battle Creek Transit since, but Kellogg is still a staple as well as post cereal.

So, oh, post is there, that's right post is there as well.

Yeah.

Raisin brand.

Yeah.

I love Raisin brand.

Yeah, Mallory Avis: the, it smells like Fruity Pebbles some days, so I Oh wow.

I was the idiot when we moved there.

Who?

Uh, I walked outside and I'm like, what's that smell like?

It smells like blueberries.

And they're like, uh, cereal.

It's just the, the norm in, in Battle Creek.

A lot of people work in the serial business, I guess, there, yeah.

Yeah.

So we have Mallory Avis: a very large manufacturing, um, industrial park and, uh, so I would say manufacturing is our, our primary and Kellogg's headquarters are there in Battle Creek as well.

Okay.

Have you toured any of the places where they make it?

Do they offer tours?

Mallory Avis: They used to, so I actually have from when I was a, a teenager, I have a picture of myself on a cornflake spot.

Oh, you could get a souvenir Corn Flakes box with your picture out there.

Oh, that's cool, man.

Yeah, yeah.

Well, that's good.

So what's your population?

Give U.S.

some of the demographics and then we'll talk about your system.

Mallory Avis: Yeah, yeah.

So Battle Creek, the city of Battle Creek is just over 50,000 in populations.

So we're a very small city.

Our county in total is more in the 130,000 range.

So we have four cities, small cities in the uh, Calhoun County.

We run fixed route and demand response paratransit.

And then we launched a small microtransit pilot that kind of led to some big things in Calhoun County over the west gonna meet you person.

Wow.

And I think the biggest thing that I'd love you to talk about today is you're in the process of changing from a city department to a transit authority.

Tell U.S.

about that, Mallory.

Mallory Avis: Yeah, so when I came to the city five years ago, we were kind of told this is this is it.

The city is looking to transition away from this being a general fund responsibility and.

Fix this problem.

And so that's what we did.

We've spent the last five years really doing community stakeholder engagement, education, advocacy, and talking to the communities about what they need.

We did a study in 2020 that demonstrated about 20,000 unmet trips per year.

So we launched a pilot with the help of MDA that we call bc Go.

And that pilot, we were like, okay, two vehicles, that should be enough.

You know, we're gonna meet the need that the consultants identified.

They way underestimated it.

So our first year of operations, we had 150,000 trip requests.

Wow.

And we only met about 22,000 photos.

So we are not meeting all of the demand.

And we used all of that data to engage the community and say, Hey, let's start a robust, comprehensive, countywide transportation system.

But it's gonna cost you.

Yeah.

So, uh, we went to the voters last year and asked them to create a transit authority and fund a transit authority, and it passed 59% like the WOW community spoke.

Wow.

That's something, yeah.

When they did that, did they vote on funding?

Mallory Avis: They did.

We proposed a 2.66 mills property tax millage.

So that means it's roughly $266 per year for every $100,000 of value on somebody's property.

Yeah.

So if I got a $200,000 house in Battle Creek, I'm paying 500 for transit.

Yeah.

Mallory Avis: 500 a year.

And they voted 59% of the people voted Yes.

Understanding that, voted for it.

Mallory Avis: Yes.

They want better transit.

Mallory Avis: They, yeah, they spoke.

That's really interesting, Mallory.

When we come back after, uh, this quick break, I want to ask you how it's been implemented and what the next steps are to actually start,

Paul Comfort: uh, public Transit Authority.

We're back at the Community Transportation Association of America CTAs Expo.

We are in San Diego.

Go California, and it has been kind of a chilly day, a little bit, maybe 68.

What do you think Mallory?

Mallory Avis: Uh, who would've thought that Michigan would be warmer right now?

Yeah.

Than California.

How about it?

Southern California?

That, yeah.

So right before the break we were talking about the voters voted 59%.

To fund a new transit authority.

Yeah.

So where are you at in the process now and what does that look like when you start a transit authority?

Mallory Avis: You know, I think a lot of people take for granted the work that has to go on behind it.

And we passed it, what, November 5th was the election.

Okay.

We passed the millage and then I think people were expecting buses to be on the road November 6th.

So, you know, a lot of it is community education and community input.

We have a board.

Uh, the board is really working to make sure that the community has input.

Some of these communities have never had transportation at all before.

So I shared earlier that we are, you know, 50,000, just over 50,000 in population.

We don't have Uber, we don't have Lyft.

We don't even have taxis like private taxi companies.

Oh, wow.

Yeah.

So public transit is the only option.

That's probably why the voters voted for it.

Mallory Avis: Absolutely.

Like they, they don't have lot of other options.

Yeah.

They know.

And so really I, you know, we're starting a business from the ground up and we had to do everything from brand recognition.

So we had to create a brand.

From, you know, the ground up and that brand's gonna be called Ride Calhoun is that's the name of your county?

Mallory Avis: Yes.

Yep.

So Battle

Paul Comfort: Creek is a city in Calhoun County?

Yes.

Okay, got it.

So

Mallory Avis: we're gonna go from Battle Creek Transit to Ride Calhoun, and we're gonna have three modes of service.

RC Ride Calhoun, RC Max, RC Move, and RC Flex.

And so really creating all of those services.

And now working on what do the legal agreements and arrangements look like for the transition of the assets?

The experts already exist in, in Calhoun County.

We're already there.

We've been doing the work, and so transitioning all of that over to an entirely different governance structure, that is where the work really begins now.

Yeah.

So what do the city council think of it?

Mallory Avis: I'm not gonna lie, it's mixed.

Obviously it's political.

There's some people who feel like they're losing control of transit and the decision making related to transit.

I look at it as now the people have more direct control.

Right?

So.

We have to go for renewal of this millage in four years, and obviously if we aren't meeting the needs of the voters and we aren't fulfilling our promises that we made, then they can choose not to renew that millage.

And that's roughly $5 million a year of funding that.

Yeah, that we're looking at.

What's your total of budget?

The Mallory Avis: total budget for the system is 12 million.

Okay.

Mallory Avis: Our current budget for Battle Creek Transit is only about four or 5 million.

Oh, wow.

Mallory Avis: So, you know, we're growing significantly, almost doubling the size of our fleet and then serving three cities that previously weren't served before.

That's interest.

So you have a new board of directors.

Mallory Avis: Yeah, and it's a good mix of people.

Really.

We're lucky this first round of board members are everywhere from the president of the local community college.

To the chair of the local economic development firm.

Oh yeah.

Movers and Shakers Local, yes.

Local elected officials like, and these people are doing it voluntarily.

Right?

They don't get paid.

And I think making sure the community knows that they're doing it because they're passionate about it, not because there's any sort of quid pro quo going on.

Yeah, that's good.

Mallory Avis: They care about mobility and they understand the need from whatever their respective positions are in their full-time job.

Yeah.

So, where are you at in the process and what happens next?

Mallory Avis: So, we are expecting to fully launch Ride Calhoun by October 1st.

So we are Wow.

This year, 2025.

Yeah.

We are Mallory Avis: in the thick of it.

I have the honor of serving as the executive director for Ride Calhoun, while also being the public transit director for the city of Battle Creek.

Alright, now pause.

Yeah.

You get double paid.

Mallory Avis: No.

Oh man, double, Mallory Avis: definitely double the work.

Double the headache.

Okay.

Yeah.

Uh, same paycheck.

Okay.

All.

Are you gonna need more federal money and stuff for the buses?

Because you're gonna We are.

Yeah, we are.

Mallory Avis: We have been so lucky to have the support at both the federal level and the state level.

So really for the last four years we've been doing the pilot, our BC Go pilot.

Yeah.

Which was a microtransit system that ran countywide.

So it was a rural microtransit demonstration.

It's to kind of see like, would this idea work?

In mdot, the Michigan Department of Transportation, they funded that at a hundred percent Okay.

For the last four years.

Wow.

So capital operating all of it.

And then now they've come through with kind of the, the funding that we need to transition as well as FTA.

And then we were very lucky to get some congressionally directed.

Spending over the last year to help with all of the, I'm gonna say startup costs that go with, who's your congress person up there?

Uh, Mallory Avis: Senator Peters, so Thank you.

Senator Peters.

Okay.

For the, the congressionally directed spending.

That's great.

Mallory Avis: Yeah.

Where are you getting, like your buses, are they gonna be electric?

What are you doing with all the buses kind of stuff, and how are you gonna get buses so quick?

Mallory Avis: I know, right?

So I don't think people understand that.

Like there's not a dealership that, yeah.

Right.

You can just walk on a lot and drive away with a bus.

Right.

So making sure the community understands that.

The good thing is that.

Over the last five years in Battle Creek, 70% of our fleet has been replaced over the last five years.

Oh, wow.

Good job.

So when I came to Battle Creek, our average age of our buses was 17 years.

Oh man.

So when I came in 2019, most of our buses were between 2001 and 2006 years.

That's almost historic,

Paul Comfort: you know, it

Mallory Avis: really, they had like 900,000 miles on them.

Wow.

And they had been passed down from several other agencies.

So, you know, it was one of those like, we'll give you this bus for a dollar kind of thing.

Paul Comfort: Yeah.

Mallory Avis: And so I had the challenge of like, we've gotta fix our state of good repair situation right now.

And so now we're going into this brand new authority with an entirely new fleet.

Funding for a new renovated facility.

Funding for a new cad, A BL software, funding for rebranding and marketing.

We really get the chance to truly build it.

Are you in the middle of all that right now?

In the middle of all of it.

Wow.

Yeah.

With three people.

A lot going on.

Which are People are, yeah.

Yeah.

Who are they?

Mallory Avis: I have an operations supervisor.

Okay.

A maintenance supervisor myself.

And then I have a mobility manager who's really, you know, kind of taken on a lot of the community engagement aspects of Oh yeah.

You know, Mallory Avis: making sure the public gets a chance to stay involved in this.

And, and what does that look like?

What's the process of communication?

Oh, Mallory Avis: I tell you, so I'll give you a perfect example.

I land back in Michigan Thursday at 5 55.

I think our clean land after this.

Yeah, yeah.

Yep.

After CTAA is over, I have a presentation that Thursday night at 7:00 PM Wow.

Yeah.

You know, going to all of our city council meetings, township meetings, making sure that we are anywhere, we are invited to be able to educate the community on what's happening, because ultimately they're paying for it.

Right?

And they have questions about what's happening, where are we going, and when do we get to start riding these new buses?

Yeah.

How about it?

Yeah, that's good.

Well, that's wonderful.

Congratulations to you, Mallory, on this.

Thank you.

Do you think it'll be started by October?

Mallory Avis: October 1st?

We are, you know, I actually met some great people here that are gonna, you know, we're gonna touch base on.

Wrapping the vehicles, rebranding everything.

We get a chance to start fresh.

I don't think very many communities get to do that.

No.

So we get to start fresh, a brand new transit system in a community that's never had this level of transit before.

And our goal is to just do it.

Right.

That's great.

That's great.

So wrapping up, give U.S.

a little bit about your personal life, if you don't mind.

Family hobbies?

Any good books you've read lately?

Oh yeah.

You mean Mallory Avis: besides yours?

Oh, thank you.

And I didn't pay her to say that.

Mallory Avis: Yeah, so I said earlier, I grew up in Chicago and I think when you get moved as a teenager, you're always like, I'm going back to where I came from.

Paul Comfort: Yeah.

Mallory Avis: Michigan has grown on me.

I think if you've never been to Michigan.

Michigan is a beautiful, beautiful state.

No matter which side of the state you're on.

So, you know, I, I married my high school sweetheart.

We've been married for 17 years.

We have two beautiful children.

I'm lucky.

I have a boy and a girl.

Oh, that's good.

Yeah.

Uh, my daughter's four, my son is two.

And we get the chance to kind of be active in our communities.

So my husband works at the VA hospital in Battle Creek, and we both get to kind of work in these pillars.

Of the community industries.

Yeah.

And uh, it's really nice.

Yeah.

We're looking forward to raising our family in, in Battle Creek.

That's good.

And what do you do like for hobbies?

Mallory Avis: Oh, work.

Yeah.

Not gonna lie.

Right now it's, it's two full-time jobs.

I've always been a workaholic a little bit, I think.

So in the past, bartending was my hobby.

Okay.

Right.

It like how many hobbies make you money on the side as well.

Now I, you know, around a patio fire, I get to, I get to bartend a little bit for my husband and I, but.

Really our, our time is consumed with our kids right now.

Right now they're little.

We're kind of soaking it in.

Yep.

Understood.

Mallory Avis: And then when we're not doing that, I'm working, when I'm not wearing the Battle Creek Transit hat, I'm wearing the Ride Calhoun hat.

So there you go.

Well Ma, you've got a big job still ahead of you all this summer and into the fall.

Yeah.

I wish you the very best.

I can't wait to see what all happens in October when you actually make the transition.

Mallory Avis: Yes.

You'll have to come check it out when we're done.

Alright, thanks again for being a guest on Transit Unplug.

Mallory Avis: Thank

Paul Comfort: you.