Photo via Milwaukee County Transit System - Facebook
MCTS - Blue Line Bus
People board a blue line bus
Public transit must remain robust, affordable and accessible in Milwaukee. According to recent reports, with federal stimulus funding running out, County Executive David Crowley’s recommended 2026 budget faces a $14 million shortfall, proposing a 15% cut to Milwaukee County Transit System (MCTS) service to close the gap. This cut would eliminate six bus lines and implement various frequency reductions and shortenings of remaining routes, while also raising base fares from $2 to $2.75. Additionally, the recommended budget would end TransitPlus Same Day Pilot, an on-demand paratransit service implemented in 2024 for people with disabilities.
If enacted, these cuts will have dire consequences for hundreds of thousands of Milwaukeeans who rely on public transit for work, school, groceries and medical or social services, especially in working-class neighborhoods. The 2024 MCTS annual report found that MCTS connects people to 386,000 jobs, 55,000 businesses, 900 schools, 24 hospitals and 18 colleges and universities.
A service-change proposal submitted to the county board shows that half of the six bus lines at risk of being eliminated (Routes 20, 28, 33, 34, 55 and 58) serve neighborhoods that have majority Black and Brown populations. In each neighborhood serviced by these lines, nearly half of all households rely on just one car. In accordance with Milwaukee County’s Racial Equity Budget Tool and MCTS adherence to Title IV of the Civil Rights Act, major budget decisions that impact communities of color must be critically assessed and mitigated.
If these cuts to MCTS are adopted without alternative funding being offset, it would blatantly undermine county and MCTS commitments to service equity. It can certainly be acknowledged that sources of funding at the County’s discretion are limited. To give two examples, MCTS cannot enact its own tax, and the hopes for a Regional Transit Authority (RTA) in Milwaukee were killed by State Republicans in 2011. But some form of state authorization must close the budget gap and preserve as much of MCTS as possible because the well-being and livelihood of thousands of Milwaukee County residents depends on it.
Some groups have already begun mobilizing. Citizen Action of Wisconsin and partners will be hosting a community event on Thursday, Oct. 30 from 6 to 8 p.m. at Washington Park Urban Ecology Center, where Milwaukeeans have an opportunity to speak directly to county supervisors and demand that they protect public transit.
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The county board will meet to vote on the proposed 2026 budget next Friday, so there is still time for constituents to call their supervisors and urge them to support restoring lost MCTS services within the budget. Visit the board directory here. Members of the public will be allowed to attend the meeting and offer comment.
