Joining the brave new world of 2016, Milwaukee County Transit System (MCTS) announced Monday that bus riders can now use credit cards—or other contactless forms of payment like mobile wallets and smart devices—to pay their fares. “Just tap and ride,” says MCTS. Annoying Umo app no longer required! (You can still use the Umo app. Oh, and you can still use cash.)
How does it work? MCTS explains:
1. When you board the bus, look for the fare validator near the driver.
2. Tap your contactless credit or debit card, phone, or smart device on the validator. For a clear, single transaction, remove your card from your wallet and tap it directly on the validator.
3. Wait for the confirmation screen and take your seat.
Your fare will be automatically charged to the card or payment method you tapped.
Transfers and fare capping will still work, provided you use the same card or device each time you board. And again, you don’t have to use a lousy app (Umo)!
MCTS
Following a not-insignificant price increase on January 1, 2026, MCTS fares are currently $2.75 per ride for riders age 12-64. Fare capping—a.k.a. the most you can spend over a certain duration of time—is $8.25 daily, $33 weekly, and $99 monthly. Reduced rates for riders age 6-11 or 65+, and riders with qualifying disabilities, are $1.25 per ride. Fare capping for these rates is $4 daily, $16.50 weekly, and $49.50 monthly. Kids 5 and under ride free.
Also: Remember when MCTS had its own proprietary app that worked really well and you could see where the buses were and watch them move along their routes in real time? Huh!
Also also: Remember when MCTS installed TV screens in all of the buses and the screens just played trivia and commercials and weird junk like “The Clever Cleaver Brothers” and then MCTS got rid of the screens six months later? Double huh!
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• Here are the MCTS fare increases that go into effect January 1, 2026, and that’s it