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Summerfest & Other Festivals

Ride MCTS to the main gate of Summerfest, Wisconsin State Fair, the Lakefront Festivals and more! Getting to and from Summerfest and other festivals is easy, safe and convenient when you let MCTS do the driving! No matter if you take a local route from Bay View, Bronzeville or the East Side, the Downtown Shuttle from downtown or a Freeway Flyer from the suburbs, MCTS offers several choices to get to all of the great fests Milwaukee has to offer.

Festivals

  Dates Shuttle
Service		 Freeway
Flyer
Summerfest
June 28 - July 2
July 4 - July 9		 yes yes
Pre>Fare
Wisconsin State Fair
Aug 3 - 13		 yes yes
PrideFest
June 9 - 11		 yes no
Polish Fest
June 16 - 18		 yes no
Festa Italiana
July 21 - 23		 yes yes
German Fest
July 28 - 30		 yes yes
Irish Fest
Aug 17 - 20		 yes yes
Mexican Fiesta
Aug 25 - 27		 yes no
Indian Summer
Sept 8 - 10		 yes no
Summerfest Downtown Shuttle Info

Board the Summerfest Downtown Shuttle and ride directly to the North Gate. The Shuttle provides service approximately every 15 minutes from 11:30 am to 12:30 am. 

                                                                                                                      Regular         Discounted

MCTS M•CARD Ride  $2.50 $1.25
Cash Ride  $3.00 $1.50
M•CARD / 1, 7 or 31-Day Pass  Free Free
DISCOUNTED: Children (ages 6 - 11), seniors (65 and over) and persons with disabilities with proper ID. Children under 6 ride free when accompanied by an adult)
Summerfest Freeway Flyer Info

Freeway Flyers operate from nine Park-Ride lots to the Summerfest Main Gate. Flyers provide service on weekdays, approximately every 30 minutes from 11:30 am to 5:00 pm, and approximately every 15 minutes from 5:00 pm to 12:30 am. On Saturdays and Sundays service is every 15-20 minutes. Times may be impacted by construction and peak traffic periods.

MCTS Pre>Fare, a new digital bus ticket that's good for a round-tip on any MCTS Summerfest Freeway Flyer. Pre>Fare is quicker, easier and cheaper than paying with cash ($6.00 vs $7.00). Visit RideMCTS.com/PreFare after June 1st for more information and to buy your ticket.

Round Trip Freeway Flyer Fare

  Regular Discounted
M•CARD Ride  $5.00 $3.00
Cash Ride  $7.00 $3.00
Pre>Fare  $6.00 $3.00
1, 7 or 31 - Day Pass Additional $2.50 Additional $0.80
Valid Transfer - Tap card  Additional $2.50 Additional $0.80
DISCOUNTED: Children (ages 6 - 11), seniors (65 and over) and persons with disabilities with proper ID. Children under 6 ride free when accompanied by an adult)

Below is a list of Park-Ride lots where you can catch a Freeway Flyer to Summerfest.

MCTS 2017 Summerfest Freeway Flyer
  • Saukville Walmart - Hwy. 33/Green Bay Ave. east of I-43
  • Grafton Target/Home Depot - Hwy. 60 west of I-43
  • Brown Deer - Brown Deer Rd., west of I-43
  • Holt - Holt Ave., west of I-94
  • College North - College Ave. at I-94
  • College South - College Ave. at I-94
  • Whitnall/Hales Corners - I-43, east of S. 108th St.
  • Loomis - Loomis Rd., south of Coldspring Rd.
  • State Fair Park - I-94, S. 76th and W. Kearney
  • Watertown Plank - Watertown Plank Rd., west of U.S. Hwy. 45

*Note some changes to Freeway Flyer lots.

  • MCTS will not serve Ryan Road. Riders should use College Avenue or Holt Avenue
  • MCTS will serve the Park-Ride lot at State Fair. Parking will be free but may fill up
Pre>Fare

Pre>Fare is a digital bus ticket that's good for a round-tip on any MCTS Freeway Flyer to Summerfest.

Buy your Pre>Fare Summerfest Flyer ticket online. Scan your phone and grab a seat. You’ll save a dollar and time. 

prefare_purchase

The faster way to fest:

1. Go Here
2. Purchase Your Summerfest Flyer ticket (save $1 with online purchase)
3. Bring your Pre>Fare ticket (on your phone or print it out) to a Park-Ride Lot for your roundtrip Freeway Flyer trip to Summerfest
4. For more information about Pre>Fare and a list of FAQs click here

MCTS Pre>Fare tickets are non-refundable and are only good for use on MCTS Freeway Flyer rides to Summerfest in 2017. Each MCTS Pre>Fare ticket is good for a roundtrip ride for one rider. Click here for more information about MCTS Freeway Flyer service to Summerfest. 

Pre>Fare is powered by Tixora, a Milwaukee based e-ticket company.

Lakefront Festivals Downtown Shuttle Info

Board the original ride share -- MCTS! The Lakefront Festival Downtown Shuttle takes you directly to the North gate of Henry Maier Festival Park to enjoy your favorite festivals. MCTS takes you there quickly and easily with low round-trip fares.

  • Bus service to lakefront festivals begins approximately a half-hour prior to each day of the event and runs until a half-hour after it ends.
  • Shuttles and Flyers run approximately every 30 minutes.
  • For Festa Italiana, German Fest & Irish Fest, shuttle service runs approximately every 30 minutes.
  • Leave your car at home and take one of our bus routes to connect to the Shuttle.
  • Park for less downtown and get on the shuttle.
  • Our Routes 14, 15, GreenLine & GoldLine all drop you off within walking distance of the Henry Maier Festival Gounds.

                                                                                                                  Regular         Discounted

MCTS M•CARD Ride  $2.50 $1.25
Cash Ride  $3.00 $1.50
M•CARD / 1, 7 or 31-Day Pass  Free Free
DISCOUNTED: Children (ages 6 - 11), seniors (65 and over) and persons with disabilities with proper ID. Children under 6 ride free when accompanied by an adult)
Lakefront Festivals Freeway Flyer

Freeway Flyers operate from 4 Park-Ride lots to the Summerfest Main Gate. Flyers provide service on weekdays, approximately every 30 minutes from 11:30 am to 5:00 pm, and approximately every 15 minutes from 5:00 pm to 12:30 am. On Saturdays and Sundays service is every 15-20 minutes. Times may be impacted by construction and peak traffic periods.

Round Trip Freeway Flyer Fare

  Regular Discounted
M•CARD Ride  $5.00 $3.00
Cash Ride  $7.00 $3.00
1, 7 or 31-Day Pass Additional $2.50 Additional $0.80
Valid Transfer - Tap card   Additional $2.50 Additional $0.80
DISCOUNTED: Children (ages 6 - 11), seniors (65 and over) and persons with disabilities with proper ID. Children under 6 ride free when accompanied by an adult)

Below is a list of Park-Ride lots where you can catch a Freeway Flyer to Lakefront Festivals.

MCTS 2017 Summerfest Freeway Flyer
Tap to view full map
  • Brown Deer - Brown Deer Rd., west of I-43
  • College North - College Ave. at I-94
  • College South - College Ave. at I-94
  • State Fair Park - I-94, S. 76th and W. Kearney
State Fair Info

Our Shuttles, Freeway Flyers and local routes all take riders straight to the gates of State Fair Park August 3 through August 13.

View all State Fair transit options.

  • On all routes to Summerfest, the U-PASS (summer semester), GO Pass ($1 Day Pass applies), New Freedom Pass and Commuter Value Pass are accepted as full fare.
  • Park in designated spaces at the park-ride lots to ensure buses and patrols can get through the lots easily. 
  • Cars that are parked illegally could receive tickets and/or be towed by local authorities. 
  • In order to keep your car safe in a parking lot, we recommend you do not leave anything of value in your car and do not leave anything in view in the passenger compartment. Always lock your doors and report any issues to the police agency where the lot is located.
  • Times may vary due to construction and traffic delays. Service does not operate on Monday, July 3rd when Summerfest is closed. We are not responsible for missed admission promotions offered by Summerfest which typically end at 3 PM. Please plan your trip to Summerfest to account for possible construction and/or traffic delays.