Fall Changes August 25, 2024
We’re making changes starting Sunday, August 25th that will increase the frequency of service, make service easier to understand, and improve reliability. MCTS is also introducing new school service to the Howard Fuller Collegiate Academy.
Routes with Modifications
Routes 24 & 76
MCTS will be modifying Routes 24 and 76 to increase service to businesses on S. 76th St. and in Greendale
- Route 24 will be extended south to Greendale to a new endpoint at Northway (60th) & Grange. It will follow the same routing as Route 76 does today. Buses will continue to serve Southridge.
- Every Route 24 bus will travel to 60th (Northway) & Grange before 7 p.m. every day. After 7 p.m., buses will alternate between ending at 74th & Holmes or Northway (60th) & Grange.
- Route 24 buses will arrive approximately every 20 min. compared to 30 min. on Route 76 buses today. Evening service will be comparable to today. Buses will continue to operate between 530 a.m. and 11 p.m.
- This change will be an improvement compared to today where only every other Route 76 bus goes to Greendale and only does so after the layover at 74th & Holmes.
- Route 76 will be changed to only operate as far south as Southridge. Buses will no longer operate to Greendale. Route 76 will continue to provide high frequency service.
Route 30
Route 30 will begin traveling south on Van Buren St. between Kilbourn Ave. and Wisconsin Ave. after the completion of the Van Buren Transformation Project in mid-to-late Fall. The southbound routing on Jackson St. will be discontinued.
This project will introduce new transit enhancements for passengers including:
- In-lane boarding islands that prioritize transit (see photo below).
- Bus shelters on the new boarding islands at Ogden and Juneau.
- New and/or improved ADA-compliant boarding zones.
In addition, this change will allow Route 30 buses to serve the CONNECT 1 BRT Station on Wisconsin Avenue & Van Buren (#9651). This will improve the connection to Route 14 which is one block away at Cass Street.
MCTS would like to thank the City of Milwaukee Multi-Modal team for working to improve transit operations as well as pedestrian safety on Van Buren Street. More information on this project can be found online at the Van Buren Transformation Project.website.
Route 33
Route 33 will be modified on the east end to travel to Wisconsin Ave. & Cass St. after the completion of Van Buren Transformation Project in mid-to-late Fall.
- Eastbound buses will travel south on Van Buren to Kilbourn Ave., east on Kilbourn Ave. to Prospect, south on Prospect to Wisconsin Ave., west on Wisconsin to Cass St. where buses will layover behind Route 14 buses.
- After the layover, buses will travel west on Wisconsin Ave. to Van Buren, north on Van Buren to Juneau Ave., and west on Juneau Ave. to the regular routing
- This location will provide bus drivers with year-round access to a nearby restroom at the layover.
Route 60
Route 60 will be reconfigured on the southern end near 60th & Layton. The current detour routing described below will become permanent. This change will provide a shorter trip time to Meijer and other destinations near 60th & Layton.
- Southbound buses will travel south on 60th to Layton, east on Layton to 55th and U-turn to travel west and then layover near the Meijer gas station. Northbound buses will continue to travel north on 60th like today.
Routes with More Frequent Service Based on Ridership
GreenLine
The GreenLine will provide more frequent service on Saturdays during the midday. Buses will arrive every 17-18 min between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. compared to every 20 min today.
Route 28
Route 28 will provide 30 min. service earlier in the afternoon (1 p.m. compared to 3 p.m.) on weekdays compared to 40 min. service today.
Route 54
Route 54 will provide 30 min. service earlier on Saturdays (6 a.m. compared to 10 a.m.) to better meet ridership demand.
Route 57
Route 57 will provide 35 min. service on Saturdays after 10 p.m. (compared to 55 min.) to improve connections with Amtrak trains at the Intermodal Station.
Route 63
Route 63 will provide more frequent service on weekdays and weekends:
- Weekday frequency improves to every 17-18 min. from during morning and afternoon peak periods compared to every 23 min. service today.
- Saturday frequency improves to every 22 min. from 830 a.m. to 8 p.m. (compared to only from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.).
- Sunday frequency improves to every 22 min. from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. compared to 30 min. today.
Routes 21 & 66
Routes 21 and 66 will return to providing service to UWM with the new school year.
Improving Efficiency Based on Ridership
CONNECT 1 BRT
CONNECT 1 BRT Saturday service frequency returns to every 15 minutes during the day with the end of the summer festival season.
Routes on Detours Through the Fall
The following routes will remain on detour during the Fall: Route 15, Route 35, Route 66, and Redline.
- Route 15 will continue to detour at the northern end in both directions due to construction on the Holton St. Bridge.
- Route 35 will continue to detour at the southern end in both directions due to the reconstruction of the Loomis Road bridge over I-894.
- Route 66 will detour on the eastern end at 20th Street in both directions due to construction.
- RedLine will continue to detour at the eastern end in both directions due to construction on Downer Avenue between Capitol Drive and Edgewood Avenue.
New School Routes
HF1 & HF2
Routes HF1 and HF2 will begin providing service to the Howard Fuller Collegiate Academy located on Vel R. Phillips Ave. & Garfield Avenue. These routes will serve high school students on the north/northwestern side of the city of Milwaukee.
Routes HF1 and HF2 will operate one inbound trip to the school in the morning and one outbound trip from the school in the afternoon on weekdays. Students can board at existing bus stops along each route. Buses will board / drop off students on Vel Phillips Ave. facing northbound between Garfield Avenue and North Avenue.
- HF1 – Howard Fuller Collegiate Academy Route 1 via RT 12
- A.M. buses to school will start at Hopkins St. and Villard Ave. and travel east on Villard Ave. to Green Bay Ave., south on Green Bay Ave to Hampton Ave., west on Hampton Ave. to N. 32nd St., south on N. 32nd St. to Atkinson Ave., southeast on Atkinson Ave. to Teutonia Ave., south on Teutonia Ave. to North Ave., east on North Ave. to Dr. Martin Luther King Dr., south on Dr. Martin Luther King Dr. to Lloyd St., west on Lloyd St. to Vel R. Phillips Ave., and north on Vel R. Phillips Ave to the school.
- P.M. buses leaving school will travel north on Vel R. Phillips Ave. to North Ave. and follow the same routing noted above in reverse order after picking up students at dismissal.
- HF2 – Howard Fuller Collegiate Academy Route 2 via BLU & RT 30
- A.M. buses to school will start at N. 43rd St. and Silver Spring Dr. and travel west on Silver Spring Dr. to Sherman Blvd., south on Sherman Blvd. to Fond du Lac Ave., southeast on Fond du Lac Ave. to North Ave., east on North Ave. to Dr. Martin Luther King Dr., south on Dr. Martin Luther King Dr. to Lloyd St., west on Lloyd St. to Vel R. Phillips Ave., and north on Vel R. Phillips Ave to the school.
- P.M. buses leaving school will travel north on Vel R. Phillips Ave. to North Ave. and follow the same routing noted above in reverse order after picking up students at dismissal.
Students should look for buses with the following destination signs:
- HF1
- To School: HF1 TO FULLER / HF1 VIA RT 12
- Leaving School: HF1 TO VILLARD / HF1 VIA RT 12
- HF 2
- To School: HF2 TO FULLER / HF2 VIA BLU & RT 30
- Leaving School: HF2 TO SILVER SPRING / HF2 VIA BLU & RT 30
Use the Trip Planning features on RideMCTS.com and the Umo app to find the routes that work best for you. With WisGo in the Umo App, planning your trip has never been easier. Just enter your destination, choose your route, and purchase your fare.