6 Bus Routes That Could Disappear in 2026

MCTS Bus. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.

The Milwaukee County Transit System (MCTS) is expected to eliminate six routes in 2026.

Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley and MCTS are on the same page when it comes to route cuts in 2026. The transit system submitted a budget request in August proposing service reductions and Crowley included a proposal to eliminate six routes in his budget recommendation to the Milwaukee County Board.

With large annual budget gaps, MCTS is reducing expenses by first cutting routes with low ridership. Together, the six routes targeted for cuts represent 5% of the system’s ridership. If approved by the Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors during the budget process, MCTS will cut the following routes.

• Route 20
• Route 28
• Route 33
• Route 34
• Route 55
• Route 58

“When making any changes to service, we look to minimize impact to the public. To do this, we target routes with lower productivity and focus on times and days with lower ridership,” a spokesperson for MCTS told Urban Milwaukee. “We also determine if those routes are already well-served by nearby, adjacent routes, and consider which areas within the system have greater access to a car.”

The transit system is facing a $14 million operating budget deficit in 2026 and, unless service is reduced, an even greater deficit in 2027, according to the county’s budget office. MCTS has a structural operating deficit. The system costs more than the revenue MCTS has to pay for it. Since 2020, the system has filled the gap largely with federal stimulus funding released during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In his address his budget address to Milwaukee County supervisors, Crowley said MCTS is pursuing “a rightsizing of the system to ensure it is fiscally sustainable, meets the needs of our residents, and can stay solvent for years to come.”

In June, MCTS shocked policymakers when it announced a projected $10.9 million budget deficit — recently revised to $9.6 million. To close the gap, MCTS has cut service hours along 17 bus routes and accelerated its spending down of federal stimulus funds. The system expects to run out of federal stimulus funds by the end of next year.

The system is also planning to begin clamping down on fare evasion. MCTS recently reported that as many as one in three riders are not paying a fare, resulting in approximately $9 million in uncollected fare revenue. The system provided supervisors with a list of potential strategies for reducing fare evasion earlier this month.

On top of the proposed cuts, MCTS is also planning to modify five routes, also with the goal of reducing costs:

• Route 11: Service would no longer run west of N. 92nd Street.
• Route 22: Service would no longer run east of N. Humboldt Boulevard.
• Route 24: Buses would no longer travel beyond Southridge Mall in Greendale.
• Route 80: Buses would no longer run all the way to Brown Deer Park at the north end of the route. Instead service will end at Glendale Industrial Park at the intersection of N. Green Bay and W. Florist avenues.
• Route 88: Buses would no longer run to N. 124th Street. Westbound service would instead turn around at N. 107th Street.

UPDATE: The list of routes being eliminated has been updated.