DeKALB — With the new year, buses in the DeKalb area will now be running 362 days a year instead of about 350 days, and riders will see changes in routes 16, 17 and 18.

DeKalb Sycamore Area Transportation Study [DSATS] changed its transportation services including routes 16, 17 and 18. These changes went into effect Jan 2.

DSATS controls funding for highway and public transit projects in the DeKalb area, and provides transportation in its region.

In previous years, buses were not in service during Thanksgiving week and the few days between Christmas and New Years. The service times of the buses have also changed, extending from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m.

Related: University, city bus lines join for efficiency

“We’re evaluating and analyzing the system and trying to make efficient, practical changes at a consistent pace that is not overwhelming for the passengers,” Transit Manager Marcus Cox said.

With the increase in passengers from last year, DSATS plans to run even when NIU is not in session. Cox observed the passengers were not only NIU students, but also community members whose use of the services were increasing.

“Overall, public transport is really going to benefit from more staff working to improve public transport in the region,” Brian Dickson, DSATS coordinator and transportation planner, said.

Related: City and NIU bus lines may merge

One change riders will see is in route 16 which now offers on-demand stops to Schnucks, 975 S. Annie Glidden Rd. Before the change, these requests were only available between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. Now, passengers are able to request a stop at Schnucks at any time during the hours of service.

Route 17 now has two buses running 16 hours of the day, instead of eight. These routes were available every hour, but to shorten the wait time, they are now running every 30 minutes.

Route 18, which was formally operated by TransVAC, a transportation service in the DeKalb metropolitan area. Route 18 is now overseen by HuskieLine and continues to run 14 hours of the day. In addition, route 18 will now service the DeKalb County Health Department, 2550 N. Annie Glidden Rd.

Related: NIU, county seek transit merge

Transit Grants Administrator Sabrina Kuykendall makes sure DSATS are on budget and stay in compliance with the regulations to continue receiving federal and state grants. One of her roles is to attend open houses and forums to get feedback on how well their services are. She said passengers are happy about the new addition to route 18.

“We want the system to be the best system it can be, and we want it to work for everyone,” Kuykendall said.