Madison County Transit, or MCT for short, is a

bus A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a road vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van. It is most commonly used in public transport, but is also in use for cha ...

and bike trail transportation system that serves the citizens of Madison County, which is located in

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rock ...

approximately

northeast The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sep ...

St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

. It was created in 1980 by the Madison County Board to improve transportation in Madison County, and is a completely separate transit system from the St. Louis Metro Transit system which includes MetroLink, which doesn't operate into Madison County, though the buses connect with many MetroBus routes and even serve MetroLink stations in

East St. Louis East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fa ...

, Belleville and

Downtown St. Louis Downtown St. Louis is the central business district of St. Louis, Missouri, the hub of tourism and entertainment, and the anchor of the St. Louis metropolitan area. The downtown is bounded by Cole Street to the north, the river front to the eas ...

Services

Madison County Transit operates a fleet of 89 buses on 28 routes, carries 10,000 riders daily, 220,000 monthly, and 2.6 million riders annually. It includes an

express bus service Public transport bus services are generally based on regular operation of transit buses along a route calling at agreed bus stops according to a published public transport timetable. History of buses Origins While there are indications ...

from towns across Madison County to downtown St. Louis, cross county bus service for long-distance services within the county, and

shuttle bus A shuttle bus is a bus that travels a shorter route in comparison to most bus routes. Typically, shuttle buses travel in both directions between two points. Shuttle buses are designed to transport large groups of people who are all travellin ...

service, as well as a

paratransit Paratransit is the term used in North America, also known by other names such as community transport ( UK) for transportation services that supplement fixed-route mass transit by providing individualized rides without fixed routes or timetables. ...

bus service known as ACT (Agency for Community Transit) or Runabout. In 2008, MCT gave out Summer Break Youth Bus Passes to over 22,000 students ages 12–18. Illinois Public Act 095-0708 became effective in February 2008, allowing all

elderly Old age refers to ages nearing or surpassing the life expectancy of human beings, and is thus the end of the human life cycle. Terms and euphemisms for people at this age include old people, the elderly (worldwide usage), OAPs (British usage ...

disabled Disability is the experience of any condition that makes it more difficult for a person to do certain activities or have equitable access within a given society. Disabilities may be cognitive, developmental, intellectual, mental, physical, ...

people to ride bus service for free. All buses are equipped with bike racks,

wheelchair lift A wheelchair lift, also known as a platform lift, or vertical platform lift, is a fully powered device designed to raise a wheelchair and its occupant in order to overcome a step or similar vertical barrier. Wheelchair lifts can be installed in ...

s, handicapped seats, and security cameras. Buses can lower to ground level, giving easier access to elderly/disabled people.

Route list

MCT Local Routes (bus routes that only operate in Madison County)

*1 Riverbend *2 Granite City Shuttle *4 Madison-Edwardsville *6 Roxana-Pontoon Beach *7 Alton-Edwardsville *8 Central Shuttle *9 Washington Shuttle *10 State & Elm Shuttle *11 Brown Shuttle *12 Bethalto Shuttle *13 Troy-Glen Carbon *13X Highland-SIUE Express *15 East Collinsville *16 Edwardsville-Glen Carbon Shuttle *17 Cougar Shuttle *19 Edwardsville-Collinsville *20 Granite City-Pontoon Beach Shuttle *21 West Collinsville Shuttle *22 University Shuttle *23 Gateway Commerce Center Shuttle *24X Riverbend-Gateway Commerce Center Express *25X Collinsville-Gateway Commerce Center Express

MCT Regional Routes (bus routes that travel to and from St. Louis or St. Clair County)

*1X Riverbend Express *5 Tri-City Regional *14X Highland Express *16X Edwardsville-Glen Carbon Express *18 Collinsville Regional *20 Gateway Commerce Center Express

Special Service

* Muny Express

Bus stations

Madison County Transit has five bus stations where each branch of service converge. * Alton Station *

Collinsville Station Collinsville Station is a pastoral lease that operates as a sheep station in South Australia. The property is situated approximately east of Hallett and north of Adelaide. It is composed of flat and hilly terrain with areas of saltbush and ...

* Edwardsville Station * Granite City Station * Wood River Station

Bike trails

The MCT Trails System was born in the early 1990s, to preserve rail corridors for future light rail possibilities and interim trail use. In addition to the bus service, MCT owns and maintains over of bike trails throughout Madison County. Madison County Transit is the only transit system in the country with an integrated bus and bikeway system.

Trail list

* MCT Bluff Trail = * MCT Confluence Trail = * MCT Goshen Trail = * MCT Ronald J. Foster Heritage Trail = * MCT Nature Trail = * MCT Nickel Plate Trail = * MCT Quercus Grove Trail = * MCT Schoolhouse Trail = * MCT Troy Trail = * MCT Watershed Trail =

Plans

Light rail

Madison County Transit is working together with the

Bi-State Development Agency Metro Transit is an enterprise of Bi-State Development, an interstate compact formed by Missouri and Illinois in 1949. Its operating budget in 2016 was $280 million, which is funded by sales taxes from the City of St. Louis and St. Louis Coun ...

about the future Mass Transit in Greater St. Louis. There is a possibly to expand

bus rapid transit Bus rapid transit (BRT), also called a busway or transitway, is a bus-based public transport system designed to have much more capacity, reliability and other quality features than a conventional bus system. Typically, a BRT system includes ...

and light rail routes to Granite City and Edwardsville. In 2005 a study was conducted by

East-West Gateway Council of Governments The East-West Gateway Council of Governments (EWGCOG or EWG) is the official Council of Governments and Metropolitan planning organization for Greater St. Louis, USA. It was incorporated in 1965. Purpose The council coordinates planning and prob ...

to examine the possibilities of extending a light rail into Madison County showed positive results. In 1997, voters in Madison County rejected a ½ cent sales tax which would have made Madison County next on the list of planned St. Louis MetroLink lines after the 3rd phase of the MetroLink's St. Clair County Extension was complete. This phase would extend the line 5.3 miles east from its current terminus at the Shiloh-Scott Station to

MidAmerica Airport MidAmerica St. Louis Airport is a public use airport next to Scott Air Force Base. It is 14 nautical miles (16 mi, 26 km) east of the central business district of Belleville and 18 nautical miles (21 mi, 33 ...

. Originally, this was part of the second phase's plan, but its own phase was later created due to low ridership projections, as of 2021 the expansion is currently projected to be finished by 2024 as a part of Gov. J.B. Pritzker's $45 billion Rebuild Illinois Capital Program, which awarded a $96 million grant toward the extension of MetroLink's mainline about 5.5 miles to a new passenger station at the airport.

References

External links

Madison County Transit

MCT Trails
{{Illinois public transit Transportation in Madison County, Illinois Public transportation in Greater St. Louis Public transportation in the Metro East Bus transportation in Illinois Bus transportation in Missouri Transit agencies in Illinois Transit agencies in Missouri Paratransit services in the United States Rail trails in Illinois