The Milwaukee County Transit System (MCTS) is the largest transit agency in Wisconsin, and is the primary transit provider for Milwaukee County. It ranks among the top 50 transit agencies in the United States for total passenger trips. Milwaukee Transport Services, Inc. is a quasi-governmental agency responsible for the management and operation of the Milwaukee County Transit System. Its bus fleet consists of 360 buses. In , the system had a ridership of , or about per weekday as of .
History
Public transit operations began in Milwaukee during 1860. The service consisted of two horse drawn cars. On June 1, 1975, Milwaukee County took over the bus system and established the Milwaukee County Transit System after taking over the assets of the Milwaukee & Suburban Transport Company, a private operator.
In 2009, Wisconsin Governor Jim Doyle proposed a three-county Regional Transit Authority that would incorporate MCTS. The proposal faced opposition from some lawmakers and the Regional Transit Authority was never created.
In late 2013 into the early part of 2014, MCTS began debuting new technology onboard buses. This included introducing real-time bus information allowing passengers to track the exact location of buses, new fareboxes and an electronic fare system by virtue of a smart card (M•CARD), and a stop announcement system complete with visual and audio information. Clever Devices is the provider of the real-time bus information, stop annunciator system and the farebox terminal, whereas the new fareboxes were provided by Scheidt & Bachmann.
MCTS NEXT
In 2018, MCTS began a comprehensive study and overview of the entire fixed-route system and began the process of implementing a new system with faster service, more connections, and easier-to-understand routes. Multiple community meetings and forums were held to gather public input on the project. Prior to the project, only about 40% of the system was high-frequency routes, defined as routes on which buses come every 15 minutes. The consensus from the study was that riders wanted faster service and were willing to walk extra distance to bus stops. The public voted that the transit system would transition to a 60-40 model, meaning 60% of the routes would be high frequency. MCTS analyzed every bus stop in the system and removed some lightly used bus stops to speed up service. The system overhaul was implemented in 3 phases in 2021, with the first one beginning March 7. This phase involved Routes 15, 19, 31, 33, 35, 51, 52, 63, and the introduction of new routes 20 and 68. The second phase was implemented June 6, 2021, and involved changes to routes PurpleLine, 12, 14, 21, 53, 57 and 80, with new routes 11, 34, 58 and 88 being introduced. The final phase of the project, implemented August 29, 2021, affected routes BlueLine, 22, 28, 54, 55, 56, 60, 76, with new routes 18, 66 and 92. The reimagined transit system was accompanied by a 14% increase in ridership after the first phase was implemented.
Response to COVID-19
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, face masks were required on all MCTS buses. In the early stages of the pandemic, there was a passenger limit of 10 passengers per bus, which was increased to 15, but rescinded on July 1, 2021. Passengers were encouraged to limit interaction with the bus driver, exit through the back door, and to use contactless fare forms, such as the M•CARD or Ride MCTS app.
New Fare Collection System
Overview
MCTS is currently in the process of transitioning its fare collection system. Riders will continue to be able to pay fare via the Umo App using a credit or debit card, Apple Pay or Google Pay. Instead of showing the validation code in the Umo app to the driver, mobile users will now have to hold the validation code up to new fare validators. There will be a new smartcard, the WisGo Card, that will effectively replace the M•CARD. The ability to load 1, 7 and 31-day passes will be eliminated in favor of stored value. The Go Pass and Reduced Fare programs are being consolidated into one encompassing Reduced Fare Program. 90-minute transfers will be available for Umo app and WisGo card users and will cost $2 per transfer for regular adult fare, and $1 per transfer for reduced fare users. The new fare system will feature fare capping, ensuring regular riders do not pay more than $4 daily, $19.50 weekly, and $72 monthly, and reduced fare riders will not pay more than $2 daily, $11 weekly and $32 monthly. Cash will remain a payment option, but riders using cash will not be able to receive transfers or capped fares. The cash fare will continue to be $2.25 for every bus ridden.