Champaign-Urbana Mass Transit District
Encyclopedia
The Champaign-Urbana Mass Transit District is a mass transit system that is part of the Champaign-Urbana Metropolitan Area
Champaign-Urbana Metropolitan Area
The Champaign-Urbana metropolitan area, also known as Champaign-Urbana, is a metropolitan area in east-central Illinois. It is the 191st largest metropolitan area in the U.S. It is composed of three counties, Champaign, Ford, and Piatt...

 in which property taxes are levied to support a local transit system operating buses and the Illinois Terminal intermodal facility in downtown Champaign. Known locally as "MTD," the term also applies to the Board of Trustees or to the administration and operations supported both by these taxes as well as other revenues, such as bus fares. At the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign is a large public research-intensive university in the state of Illinois, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Illinois system...

, which lies within the District, all 38,000 students pay a $46 transportation fee every semester in exchange for unlimited use of the bus services. The District currently levies about 25 cents of property taxes per $100 of assessed valuation. The seven members of the Board of Trustees are appointed by the Champaign County Board. Although Willard Airport
University of Illinois Willard Airport
University of Illinois Willard Airport is an airport owned and operated by the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign located south of Savoy in Tolono Township, Champaign County, Illinois. It serves the greater Champaign-Urbana Metropolitan Area in East Central Illinois...

 lies outside the boundaries of the district, MTD offers District residents bus service to and from the airport on routes funded by the University. Buses are produced by the Canadian company New Flyer, Eldorado, and Gillig. MTD introduced hybrid buses to its fleet in Fall 2009.

Public transit before the MTD

In 1854 the first rail lines in the region were laid 2 miles west of Urbana by the Illinois Central Railroad
Illinois Central Railroad
The Illinois Central Railroad , sometimes called the Main Line of Mid-America, is a railroad in the central United States, with its primary routes connecting Chicago, Illinois with New Orleans, Louisiana and Birmingham, Alabama. A line also connected Chicago with Sioux City, Iowa...

. The city of Urbana initially wanted nothing to do with the new railroad economy, so a new city, originally named West Urbana, was created to help serve the needs of the railroad. In 1860 West Urbana was renamed Champaign, and subsequently developed into an important railroad town. The station served as a stopover on the way from New Orleans
New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...

 to Chicago, and vice versa. In 1909 this was expanded to also include service from Chicago to Jacksonville, Florida
Jacksonville, Florida
Jacksonville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Florida in terms of both population and land area, and the largest city by area in the contiguous United States. It is the county seat of Duval County, with which the city government consolidated in 1968...

.

The first trolley service in the area was established in 1863, when the Urbana Railroad Company was created to link Urbana and Champaign. These first trolleys were drawn by horses or mules. By 1890, work had begun on an electrified
Electricity
Electricity is a general term encompassing a variety of phenomena resulting from the presence and flow of electric charge. These include many easily recognizable phenomena, such as lightning, static electricity, and the flow of electrical current in an electrical wire...

 trolley system under the auspices of William B. McKinley. At its peak, this system had as many as 20 routes, including a nighttime "Owl Service" linking Champaign and Urbana.

Interurban streetcar service was also supplied to the area (and indeed to much of Illinois) by the Illinois Terminal Railroad Company, another brainchild of William McKinley. McKinley's scheme of selling electricity from the interurban system to the surrounding towns led to the founding of the Illinois Power and Light Company.

In 1901 the Illinois Motor Transit Company introduced a city bus system to the region, but they went bankrupt within the year. However, the inability of the trolley system to lay enough track to fully serve the area prompted the 1925 addition of another bus system by National City Bus Lines, a subsidiary of General Motors. In 1936, as was happening in other places across the nation, National City Bus Lines purchased the trolley system from the Illinois Power and Light Company and dismantled it. The last trolley operated on 10 November 1936. Within one month bus lines had become the dominant form of transportation in the city under the new name "Champaign-Urbana City Lines".

Ridership on the Champaign-Urbana City Lines was high, reaching 1,000,000 passengers served in 1958. Like most of America however, buses in Champaign-Urbana became less popular with the advent of affordable automobiles. On November 17, 1970, P.E. Cherry, the manager of Champaign-Urbana City Lines, published an article in the Courier stating that declining ridership, aging buses, and a rising deficit would force the line to close. The Illinois Commerce Commission conducted a hearing on the petition to close the city lines and suggested that rather than close the lines, a referendum should be drafted to create a mass transit district.

History of the modern MTD

On November 24, 1970, a mere week after the lines looked to be closing, the referendum was approved and Thomas Evans was appointed the director of the new mass transit district. The new MTD began operation on August 2, 1971 for a fee of $0.30 per ride with free transfers on buses which allowed one to navigate the area using several different bus lines. On May 13, 1971 a federal grant was procured to help this both fledging and historic transit district rework its fleet of buses, purchasing fifteen new buses, and ten used buses from Peoria, Illinois
Peoria, Illinois
Peoria is the largest city on the Illinois River and the county seat of Peoria County, Illinois, in the United States. It is named after the Peoria tribe. As of the 2010 census, the city was the seventh-most populated in Illinois, with a population of 115,007, and is the third-most populated...

. In 1973 the MTD expanded its routes to include the University, offering routes around the University and to the graduate housing complex. Fees for University students were at a reduced rate, paying only $0.10 per ride, or purchasing a $20 semester pass for unlimited rides.

In 1984 MTD received national recognition when it was chosen as the worst transportation system in America because of its very winding routes unlike Valley Metro in Phoenix, Arizona.

In 1999 Illinois Terminal
Illinois Terminal
Opened in January 1999, the Illinois Terminal is an intermodal transportation center, providing city bus, intercity bus, and rail connections to, from, and within Champaign, Illinois...

 was created in downtown Champaign which serves as both a transit hub for the MTD and a connection between the MTD, Amtrak
Amtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...

and intercity bus lines.

Today the MTD provides over 10,000,000 rides per year. The current one-way bus fare is $1.00. Transfers are free and may be used to connect with another route at transfer points to complete a one-way trip. An annual bus pass can be purchased for $60. The annual pass allows unlimited rides. All University of Illinois students, faculty, and staff have unlimited access to all routes and services.

Fatal accidents

Prior to 2004, MTD never had an accident involving a fatality. Since 2004, there have been two fatal accidents involving pedestrians and MTD buses. Both cases involved University of Illinois students on campus:
  • October 27, 2004: Carolyn B. Jeffers, a pedestrian, was struck and killed by a 26 Pack bus at the intersection of S Goodwin Ave and Gregory Dr, Urbana.
  • September 29, 2005: Sarah Channick, a pedestrian, was struck and killed by a 22 Illini bus at the intersection of S 6th St and E Chalmers St, Champaign. A lawsuit was filed.


Drivers have been re-trained, strobe lights for turning movements installed on the entire fleet, and audible signals are sounded during right-turn movements on 60-foot buses operated on campus. A campaign encouraging University of Illinois students to use crosswalks and look both ways before crossing the street was also implemented.

Facilities

Illinois Terminal
45 East University Avenue, Champaign, IL. 40°06′57"N 88°14′27"W

Administration and Operations Offices
1101 E. University Avenue, Urbana, IL. 40°06′55"N 88°11′43"W

Maintenance Department and Bus Garage
803 E. University Avenue, Urbana, IL. 40°06′57"N 88°11′53"W

Wright Street Transit Plaza
University of Illinois Campus on S. Wright Street, between Daniel and John.40°06′31"N 88°13′44"W

Downtown Urbana Transfer Point
Broadway Avenue just north of Lincoln Square, between Main and Elm.40°06′43"N 88°12′27"W

Bus routes

Bold - Main portion of route

Hopper interval - Including regular service, for example, 30 minute of yellow and 10 minute of YELLOWHopper means the first 10 and 20 buses are YELLOWHopper and then 30 bus is yellow.

Weekday Daytime Routes
Route Terminals Major streets traveled Interval
North/West South/East
1 Yellow Illinois Terminal Wal-Mart Savoy
  • White St
  • Wright St via Transit Plaza
  • Gregory Dr
  • First St
  • Fox Dr, Lyndhurst Dr
  • Woodfield Dr via Savoy Plaza
30 minutes
YELLOWHopper Lot E-14 or
Research Park

10 minutes (Northbound before 3:00pm and southbound after 2:30pm)
  • Every other bus terminates at either lot E-14 or Research Park.

20 minutes (Other)
  • Terminates only at Research Park
Red Wal-Mart Champaign Lincoln Square
  • Town Center Blvd via Market Place
  • Neil St
  • Main St via Illinois Terminal
  • White St
  • Green St via Illini Union
  • Goodwin Ave via south Urbana
  • Philo Rd via Meijer Urbana and Sunnycrest
  • Cottage Grove Ave
  • 30 minutes
    Red Express Illini Union 1 hour: 2-5pm
  • U of I days
  • Does not serve Market Place
  • Lavender Meijer Champaign Illinois Terminal
  • Boardwalk Dr (northbound) / Prospect Ave (southbound)
  • Anthony Dr, Queens Way
  • Mattis Ave, Paula Dr, Bloomington Rd
  • Harris Ave, Vine St
  • Randolph St (northbound) / State St (southbound)
  • Main St via Illinois Terminal
  • White St
  • Wright St via Transit Plaza
  • Gregory Dr
  • 30 minutes
    Lavender Express Stadium Dr & Oak St
  • 2 southbound am-trips
  • 3 southbound pm-trips (Do not serve U of I campus)
  • 3 northbound pm-trips
  • Blue Country Fair Market Place
  • Crescent Dr, Mattis Ave
  • John St
  • Randolph St (westbound) / State St (westbound)
  • Stadium Dr, Peabody Dr
  • Wright St via Transit Plaza
  • White St via Illinois Terminal
  • Columbia Ave, Bradley Ave'
  • Market St
  • 30 minutes
    Green Maplepark Dr & Lawndale Dr Main St & Brady Ln
  • Kenwood Td, Westfield Dr (westbound)
  • Maplepark Dr, John St (eastbound)
  • Springfield Ave via Country Fair
  • Randolph St (westbound) / State St (westbound)
  • Nail St via Illinois Terminal
  • Green St via Illini Union
  • Vine St via Lincoln Square
  • Fairlawn Dr, Pennsylvania Ave
  • Florida Ave via Sunnycrest
  • Knich St, Country Squire Dr
  • Lierman Ave, Main St
  • Brady Ln, Washington St
  • 30 minutes

    Buses operate in Washington St & Lierman Ave Loop as follow:
    • Before noon, clockwise
    • After noon, counterclockwise
    GREENhopper State St & John St Washington St & Lierman Ave 15 minutes
  • U of I days
  • Green Express Curtis Rd & Wynstone Dr Sixth St & Pennsylvania Ave
  • Cherry Hills Dr, Maynard Dr
  • Kirby Ave, Kenwood Rd
  • Springfiled Ave via Country Fair
  • Nail St
  • Green St via Illini Union
  • Goodwin Ave
  • Gregory via Main Library
  • Fourth St

  • Does not serve Illinois Terminal

    Limited Service
    • eastbound am-trips (6:30-8:30am)
    • westbound pm-trips (2:20-5:30pm)
    6 Orange Country Fair or Plastipak Wal-Mart Urbana
  • Springfield Ave via Country Fair
  • Country Fair Dr
  • Church St (westbound) / West University Ave (eastbound)
  • East University Ave via Illinois Terminal
  • Park St, Church St
  • Broadway Ave via Lincoln Square
  • Main St via Urbana post office and Wal-Mart Urbana
  • 30 minutes
  • Only the first and last two trip serve Plastipak.
  • ORANGEhopper Illinois Terminal Lincoln Square
    15 minutes
    Grey Parkland College Dodson East Dr & Slayback Rd or Lierman Ave & Butzow Dr
    • Bradley Ave, Williamsburg Dr
    • McKinley Ave, Prospect Ave
    • Church St (westbound) / University (eastbound) via Illinois Terminal
    • Second St, Fifth St
    • Rommie St, Wright St
    • Park St, Fairview Ave, Church St
    • Broadway St, Vine St via Lincoln Square
    • University Ave via Champaign-Urbana Mass Transit District

    30 minutes
    • Only before 9am and after 2:30pm, buses serve Slayback Rd and do not serve Butzow Dr.
    • Other times, buses terminate at Lierman Ave & Butzow Dr.
    Bronze Transit Plaza Lincoln Square
    Westbound
    • Pennsylvania Ave
    • Fourth St
    • Wright St via Transit Plaza

    Eastbound
    • Goodwin Ave via Illini Union
    • Orchard St
    • Vine St
    • Race St
    40-60 minutes
    Brown Parkland College via Clockwise

    Illinois Terminal
    Transit Plaza
    Country Fair
    • Bradley Ave
    • State St via Illinois Terminal
    • White St
    • Wright St via Transit Plaza
    • St Mary's Rd, Fox Dr, Devonshire Dr
    • Galen Dr
    • Windsor Rd
    • Winchester Dr, Crescent Dr via Country Fair
    • Duncan Rd, Clayton Blvd
    30 minutes
    via Counterclockwise

    Country Fair
    Transit Plaza
    Illinois Terminal
    10 Gold Broadmoor Dr & Mayfair Rd Richardson Estates or Cunningham Ave
    • Mattis Ave
    • Kirby Ave
    • First St via Lot E-14
    • Gregory Dr via Main Library
    • Goodwin Ave
    • Spring Field Ave via Lincoln Square
    • Broadway Ave
    • Brownfield Rd
    • High Cross Rd
    30 minutes
  • Before 11am buses operate counterclockwise to Richardson Estates.
  • At noon buses terminate at Cunningham Ave.
  • After 2pm buses operate clockwise to Richardson Estates.
  • GOLDhopper Lot E-14 Lincoln Square 10 minutes
    Teal Illinois Terminal FAR-PAR or
    Orchard Downs
  • White St
  • Green St via Illini Union
  • Goodwin Ave via FAR-PAR
  • Orchard St
  • 10 minutes
  • U of I days
  • Every other bus terminates at either PAR or Orchard Downs.
  • Teal Limited Orchard Downs 20 minutes
  • Non U of I days
  • 13 Silver Lincoln Square FAR-PAR or
    Vet-Med
  • Springfield Ave
  • Green St via Illini Union
  • Wright St via Transit Plaza
  • Gregory Dr via Main Library and FAR-PAR
  • Lincoln Ave

  • Two buses (:40 and :00 at FAR) terminate at Vet-Med. Others terminate at PAR.

    10 minutes (U of I days)

    20 minutes (Non U of I days)
    Navy Mullikin Dr & Kirby Ave or Lot E-14 Transit Plaza
    • Mullikin Dr
    • Windsor Rd
    • Fox Dr, St Mary's Rd via Lot E-14
    • Fourth St, Sixth St

    This is a limited service which consists of

    50-60 minutes (to/from Mullikin Dr)
    • 4 eastbound am-trips (7-9am,9:22am)
    • 3 westbound pm-trips (4-6pm)

    20 minutes (from Lot E-14)
    • 5 eastbound am-trips (7:20,7:45-9:05am)
    Illini North Lincoln FAR-PAR
  • North Lincoln Ave
  • North Goodwin Ave via Engineer
  • Green St via Illini Union
  • Wright St via Transit Plaza
  • Armory Ave (northbound) / Chalmers St (southbound)
  • First St via ARC
  • Gregory Dr via Main Library
  • South Goodwin Ave via ISR
  • South Lincoln Ave
  • 10 minutes
  • U of I days
  • Illini Limited Transit Plaza 30 minutes
  • Non U of I days
  • 27 Air Bus Illinois Terminal Willard Airport
  • University Ave
  • Goodwin Ave via Illini Union
  • Wright St via Transit Plaza
  • Gregory Dr
  • First St via Lot E-14
  • Dunlap St

  • 50-70 minutes
    • U of I days
    • Some northbound buses run express and do not serve U of I campus.
    • Two southbound trips serve PAR at 5:31 and 7:26am.
    331 Weekday Northeast Direct 6:55-9:06am, 4:06-6:06pm
    334 Weekday West Direct 6:40-9:00am, 4:00,6:30pm

    Weekday Evening Routes
    Route Terminals Major streets traveled Interval
    North/West South/East
    Green Parkland College Orchard Downs
    • Bradley Ave, Country Fair Dr
    • Springfield Ave via Country Fair
    • Randolph St (westbound) / State St (westbound)
    • Nail St via Illinois Terminal
    • Green St via Illini Union
    • Vine St via Lincoln Square
    • Fairlawn Dr, Pennsylvania Ave
    • Florida Ave via Sunnycrest
    • Philo Rd via Meijer Urbana
    • Windsor Rd
    • Orchard Downs Dr
    30 minutes
    GREENhopper Prospect Ave & John St Colorado Ave & PhiloRd 15 minutes
  • U of I days
  • 60 Orange Lincoln Square Wal-Mart Urbana
  • Main St
  • Lierman Ave
  • Washington St
  • Brady Ln
  • 30 minutes
    Grey Parkland College Lincoln Square
  • Bradley Ave, Bloomington Rd
  • Randolph St (northbound) / State St (southbound)
  • Main St via Illinois Terminal
  • Second St, Fifth St
  • Rommie St, Wright St
  • Park St, Fairview Ave, Church St
  • Broadway St, Vine St
  • 30 minutes
    100 Yellow Wal-Mart Champaign Wal-Mart Savoy
  • Town Center Blvd via Market Place
  • Market St
  • Bradley Ave, Columbia Ave'
  • Main St via Illinois Terminal
  • White St
  • Wright St via Transit Plaza
  • Gregory Dr, Hessel St
  • State St, First St
  • Woodfield Dr via Savoy Plaza
  • 30 minutes
    Teal Illinois Terminal Orchard Downs Refer 12 Teal 20 minutes
    130 Silver Lincoln Square FAR-PAR or
    Vet-Med
    Refer 13 Silver
    20 minutes
    • U of I days
    • Every other bus terminates at either PAR or Vet-Med.
    Silver Limited Transit Plaza
    20 minutes
    • Non U of I days
    Illini North Lincoln FAR-PAR Refer 22 Illini 10 minutes
  • U of I days
  • Illini Limited Transit Plaza 30 minutes
  • Non U of I days
  • 331 Weeknight Northeast Direct 6:06-11:30pm
    333 Weeknight Southwest Direct 7:48-11:25pm
    335 SafeRides Fixed Portion (Begins at 9pm) (Pick-up time)
  • Armory via Main Library (:27, :57)
  • Wright St via Transit Plaza
  • Green St via Illini Union (:00,:30)
  • Illinois St via ISR (:27,57)
  • U of I days
    Begins at
  • 5pm (When day light saving is observed)
  • 7pm

  • Weekday Late Night Routes U of I days only
    Route Terminals Major streets traveled Interval
    North/West South/East
    Green Illinois Terminal Lincoln Square Refer 50 Green
    15 minutes (before 3am)

    30 minutes (until 5am of Friday night)
    100 Yellow Wal-Mart Champaign or Illinois Terminal Lot E-14 Refer 100 Yellow
    • Does not serve Market Place
    30 minutes

    Buses northbound terminate at
    • Wal-Mart Champaign (before 3am)
    • Illinois Terminal (until 5am of Friday night)
    Teal Illinois Terminal Orchard Downs Refer 12 Teal 20 minutes (until 3am)
    130 Silver Lincoln Square FAR-PAR Refer 13 Silver 20 minutes (until 3am except Friday night 5am)
    Illini North Lincoln FAR-PAR Refer 22 Illini 10 minutes (until 3am except Friday night 5am)
    335 SafeRides Fixed Portion (until 3am) Refer 335 SafeRides until 6:30am


    Saturday Daytime Routes
    Route Terminals Major streets traveled Interval
    North/West South/East
    Red Wal-Mart Champaign Sunnycrest Refer 2 Red
    • Does not serve south Urbana and Meijer Urbana
    30 minutes
    Lavender Meijer Champaign Illinois Terminal Refer 3 Lavender
  • Does not serve Harris Ave, Vine St, Randolph St, and State St
  • Serves Prospect Ave and Church St (northbound) / University Ave (southbound)
  • 30 minutes
    Green Country Fair Orchard Downs Refer 50 Green
    30 minutes
    60 Orange Lincoln Square Wal-Mart Urbana Refer 60 Orange
    • Serves Urbana post office
    30 minutes
    Grey Country Fair Lincoln Square Refer 70 Grey
  • Does not serve Parkland College
  • 30 minutes
    100 Yellow Wal-Mart Champaign Wal-Mart Savoy Refer 100 Yellow
    30 minutes
    Teal Illinois Terminal Orchard Downs Refer 12 Teal 20 minutes
    130 Silver Lincoln Square FAR-PAR or Vet-Med Refer 13 Silver 20 minutes
  • U of I days
  • Two buses (:40 and :00 at FAR) terminate at Vet-Med. Others terminate at PAR.
  • Silver Limited Transit Plaza 20 minutes
  • Non U of I days
  • Illini Limited North Lincoln Transit Plaza Refer 22 Illini 30 minutes
    270 Air Bus Illinois Terminal Willard Airport Refer 27 Air Bus
    50-70 minutes
    • U of I days
    • Some northbound buses run express and do not serve U of I campus.
    • Two southbound trips serve PAR at 5:31 and 7:26am.
    tranSPORT U of I Campus Memorial Stadium
  • Goodwin Ave
  • Gregory Dr
  • Fourth St
  • 331 Saturday Northeast Direct 7:05am-11:30pm
    334 Satyrday West Direct 7:00am-11:25pm


    Sunday Daytime & Late Night Routes
    • 50 Green
    • 60 Orange
    • 70 Grey
    • 100 Yellow
    • 120 Teal
    • 130 Silver
    • 220 Illini
    • 270 Air Bus
    • 331 Northeast Direct (flex service)
    • 333 Southwest Direct (flex service)
    • 335 SafeRides (flex service)

    External links

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