Capital Area Transportation Authority

CATA began service in 1972.^[3] Its predecessor, Lansing Metro Lines, was privately owned and operated under a franchise from the city of Lansing. Poor ridership and increasing costs prompted a city buyout of Metro Lines in 1970, creating uncertainty about the future of bus service in the Lansing area.^[4] CATA was organized as a regional authority in 1971.^[5] By the end of its first year of service in 1972, the newly formed CATA had provided over 700,000 rides.^[6]

CATA was the first transit system in the United States to operate electric buses, with the assistance of a grant from the Model Cities Program. Six electric buses entered service in May 1973, operating a loop through Downtown Lansing and the State Capitol at no charge. The electric buses were built by the Battronic Truck Company of Boyertown, Pennsylvania. The $136,000 (equivalent to $986,000 in 2025) purchase price of the buses was largely funded by the federal government.^[7] CATA's electric buses were plagued by mechanical problems, and ridership declined after CATA began charging fares on the formerly free service.^[8] The electric buses were withdrawn in September 1974, and were sold to an industrial parts supplier in Flint at a substantial discount.^[9]

In 1999, Michigan State University discontinued its bus services, and CATA took over operations of bus service on campus. Fares were initially charged for these routes, before a 2019 pilot program led to a permanent removal of fares.^[10]

CATA is a two-time winner of the APTA Outstanding Public Transportation System Award, in 1991 and 2007. This award recognizes CATA's excellence in customer service, safety, and management.^[11][12]

In 2006, CATA became the first transit agency in Michigan to operate diesel-electric hybrid buses.^[3] The system continued to exclusively buy hybrid buses through 2016, before returning to conventional diesel in 2019 as the first Michigan operator of the Nova Bus LFS.^[13][14]

In August 2014, CATA introduced the CATAnow system to provide real-time bus departure information. Further developments in CATA's real-time bus tracking systems include a partnership with Transit App beginning in 2017.^[15]

CATA operates scheduled fixed-route bus and paratransit services across a 559-square-mile (1,450 km²) area throughout Ingham County and portions of Eaton and Clinton counties.^[3]

CATA has approximately 340 employees, of whom nearly 224 are bus operators.^[19] Bus operators are represented by Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1039.^[20] In 2016, 46% of CATA's operating revenue came from local sources, another 30% from state sources, and 24% came from fares and additional sources.^[21] In fiscal 2019, CATA logged 11,049,317 rides – an increase of 6.4 percent over the previous fiscal year.^[19]

CATA also operates the Capital Area Multimodal Gateway in East Lansing, the Lansing area's sole Amtrak station.

Fixed-route bus service

CATA operates scheduled fixed-route bus services on 32 routes in Lansing, East Lansing, and neighboring communities. The system's main hub is the CATA Transportation Center (CTC) in downtown Lansing, with a satellite hub, the MSU-CATA Transportation Center (MSU-CTC), at Michigan State University.

These services are operated using a fleet of roughly 100 transit buses, including rigid and articulated buses of the New Flyer Low Floor, New Flyer Xcelsior, and Nova Bus LFS models.^[22]

List of current routes

As of March 2026^[update]:^[23]

• Route 1 is the network's main crosstown corridor, connecting Downtown Lansing, East Lansing, and Okemos
• Routes 2–5 and 7–16 begin in Downtown Lansing, and primarily serve Lansing neighborhoods in a hub-and-spoke pattern
• Routes 20–26 primarily serve East Lansing and the eastern suburbs of Okemos and Haslett
• Routes 30–39 are fare-free "Spartan Service" routes operating on the campus of Michigan State University, which only run during MSU's fall and spring semesters, excluding breaks^[24]
• Routes 46 and 48 are limited-stop commuter routes between Lansing and outer Ingham County, which make one trip daily in each direction during peak hours on weekdays^[25]

More information #, Route Name ...

#	Route Name	Termini		Frequency (min)			Notes
				Mon-Fri	Sat	Sun
1	Downtown Lansing – Meridian Mall	CTC	Meridian Mall	15-20	10-20	15-20	additional Fri-Sat night service during MSU breaks
2	South Washington – Pleasant Grove	CTC	Sheffield Blvd & Bayview Dr	30	30	30
3	Willow – Lansing Mall	CTC	Lansing Mall[26]	20-30	30	30
5	South Cedar – Edgewood	CTC	Edgewood Villas	20-30	30	30
6	Cedar – Jolly Connection	Jolly Cedar Plaza	CATA Headquarters	20-30	-	-
7	Aurelius – Miller	CTC	Dunckel Rd & Beau Jardin Dr	45	80	-
8	Pennsylvania – Holt	CTC	Aurelius Rd & Davlind Dr (Holt)	30-45	30	30
9	South MLK – Miller	CTC	Meijer, S Pennsylvania Ave.	30	30	30
10	North Lansing – Turner	CTC	Thomas & Hall	25-50	45	45
11	Waverly – Colonial Village	CTC	Deerfield & Holmes	60	-	-
12	West Michigan – Waverly – LCC West	CTC	LCC West Campus	30	45	45	truncated to St. Joseph + Waverly on weekends & during LCC breaks
13	Groesbeck Area	CTC	Meijer, Lake Lansing Rd.	60	-	-
14	North Grand River – Old Town – Airport	CTC	Capital Region Int'l Airport	25-45	45	45
15	Kalamazoo – Frandor	CTC	Meijer, Lake Lansing Rd.	60	-	-
16	Old Town – W. Lake Lansing – Eastwood	CTC	Meijer, Lake Lansing Rd.	30	30	30
18	Capital City Crosstown	Mt. Hope Rd & Boston Blvd	Multimodal Gateway	45-60	-	-
20	South Harrison – Jolly-Dunckel	Shaw Ln & Farm Ln, MSU	Beau Jardin & Dunckel	35	60	60
22	MSU – Haslett – Meridian Mall (to Meridian Mall) Okemos – MSU (from Meridian Mall)	Shaw Ln & Farm Ln, MSU	Meridian Mall	35	60	-
23	MSU – Okemos – Meridian Mall (to Meridian Mall) Haslett – MSU (from Meridian Mall)	Shaw Ln & Farm Ln, MSU	Meridian Mall	35	60	-
24	East Lansing – Lake Lansing Road	MSU-CTC	Meijer, Lake Lansing Rd.	30	60	60
25	North Harrison	MSU-CTC	Meijer, Lake Lansing Rd.	60	60	60
26	Abbot – Chandler	MSU-CTC	Chandler Crossings	45	40	40	runs later and more frequently during MSU fall and winter semesters[27]
30	South & East Neighborhoods	Holden & Wilson Halls, MSU	East Campus Boarding Center, MSU		-	-	operates only during MSU fall and winter semesters[24]
31	Brody Complex & East Neighborhoods	Brody Neighborhood, MSU	East Campus Boarding Center, MSU		-	-	operates only during MSU fall and winter semesters[24]
32	Commuter Lot 89 – Snyder Hall – Clinical Center	MSU-CTC	Commuter Lot 89, MSU		-	-	operates only during MSU fall and winter semesters[24]
33	MSU Union – North & South Neighborhoods	Holden & Wilson Halls, MSU	MSU Union		-	-	operates only during MSU fall and winter semesters[24]
34	Brody – University Village	MSU-CTC	Brody Neighborhood, MSU	-			operates only during MSU fall and winter semesters[24]
35	South Neighborhood – Spartan Village	MSU-CTC	Spartan Village, MSU	-			operates only during MSU fall and winter semesters[24]
36	East Neighborhood	MSU-CTC	East Campus Boarding Center, MSU	-			operates only during MSU fall and winter semesters[24]
39	University Village	Shaw Ln & Farm Ln, MSU	Spartan Village, MSU		-	-	operates only during MSU fall and winter semesters[24]
46	Mason Limited	CTC	Cedar St & Kerns Rd (Mason)	2 trips daily	-	-	weekday peak direction only
48	Williamston–Webberville Limited	CTC	M-52 & I-96 (Webberville)	2 trips daily	-	-	weekday peak direction only

Close

In addition to the main fixed-route network, CATA operates two "Connector" deviated fixed routes, which connect the main CATA service area to Mason, Williamston, and Webberville.^[28]

Fares

Fixed-route bus fares as of March 2026^[update]:^[29]

• Regular: $1.25
• Discounted (for seniors, Medicare cardholders, disabled riders, and local students): 60¢
• Children under 42" tall & U.S. military veterans: free

Single-ride fares include a transfer ticket upon request, valid for up to two additional rides within two hours, in the same direction or on a different route. Transfer tickets are not valid for return trips on the same route.^[29]

Fares can be paid onboard with cash, credit or debit cards, or using the Transit or CATA Mobile Pay mobile apps. Change cards (branded as CATACash) are issued through the farebox as change during cash transactions.^[30] Single-ride and 10-ride prepaid tickets, and 31-day unlimited ride passes, are sold at CATA's administrative offices, the CTC, and select retail stores.^[31]

CATA is governed by a board of directors:

• Four members representing the City of Lansing:
  • Nathan Triplett (chair)
  • Derek Melot
  • Dusty Fancher (Vice Chair)
  • Jennie Gies
• Two members representing the City of East Lansing:
  • Shanna Draheim
  • Jack Schmitt
• Two members representing Meridian Township:
  • Phil Deschaine
  • Phyllis Vaughn
• One member representing Lansing Township:
  • Maggie Sanders
• One member representing Delhi Township:
  • Douglas Lecato
• One member representing Ingham County:
  • Mark Grebner
• One member representing Michigan State University:
  • John Prush
• Ex-Officio:
  • Terrance Augustine, Eaton County