Degree credit students taking at least one on-site class at Madison campuses are eligible for an unlimited ride bus pass.

Pick up your bus pass at the Student Life Office at Truax (room B1260) or Goodman South (room 109) campuses.

The City of Madison operates a fleet of 200 buses that serve Madison and eight suburban communities. Learn more about City of Madison Metro Transit services including routes and schedules, mobile apps, and more.

How To Get a Bus Pass

If you are interested in getting a bus pass, certain requirements need to be met:

  • Students enrolled in degree-credit courses can receive a free bus pass.
  • If you are taking nondegree classes and non-credit courses, you may purchase a commuter bus pass for $50 at the Truax Student Life Office B1260 or the Goodman South campus front desk during open hours.
  • If you are taking all online classes, you may purchase a bus pass. The cost is $50, which may be paid at the Truax Student Life office B1260 or the Goodman South front desk during open hours.

I Lost My Bus Pass. Can I Get a New One?

Students may report a lost, stolen, damaged, or malfunctioning bus pass in the following Madison College locations:

Goodman South Campus

Truax Campus

There is no charge for the replacement of a lost or stolen bus pass.

Madison College students may receive one bus pass replacement per semester. As soon as a bus pass is reported lost or stolen, it is deactivated in the system and can no longer be used.

Students who lose their replacement bus pass will need to purchase future ride passes from Metro Transit.

Where to Get Route and Schedule Information

Go to the Metro Transit website to find up-to-date information about routes, schedules, transfer locations, park-and-ride locations, and the rank-n-roll system for bikes.

The website includes an interactive feature called How To Ride – Trip Planner, which allows you to input the departing location and the travel destination. The site will provide locations and times for your trip(s).

Students may also pick up copies of the Metro System Map and the Ride Guide at various locations on and off-campus.

Metro Transit Help for New Users

Metro Transit has many online riding tips, including the How To Ride – Trip Planner on the City of Madison Metro Transit website.

The trip planner is available 24/7 and informs you of departure and arrival locations and times, including transfer information.

Please speak with representatives from the Madison College Student Senate about any transit-related issues. The Student Senate is located at the Truax room B1260H. You can also contact Student Senate at 608.246.6107 or senate@madisoncollege.edu.

Bus Program Policies

  • Authorized Users

    Authorized Users [Accordion]

    Only the student to whom the pass was issued may use the pass to ride a Metro Transit bus or to gain access to the Para-Transit services.

    Bus passes are not to be loaned, given, traded, sold, or gifted to any other person. Madison College bus passes are not transferable, nor are they redeemable for cash. Bus passes will be revoked if misused and students may be subject to conduct action and/or criminal charges.

  • Faculty and Staff Are Not Eligible

    p>Faculty, staff, and administrators from Madison College are not eligible to get a bus pass through the Commuter Services Program unless they are also enrolled and taking a degree credit course or courses.

    As such, he or she would also be charged the commuter service fee. The program has been developed and funded by students for students. Faculty and staff have repeatedly been encouraged to work through their union to develop a bus-rider program for employees.

  • OneCard Additionally Required

    OneCard Additionally Required [Accordion]

    You must have both a bus pass and a OneCard.

    The current Metro Transit reader system isn’t capable of reading Madison College OneCard. Future technologies may be compatible. Many citizens have been students or staff and still have their OneCard.

    Only currently enrolled students, who pay for the program, should ride the buses. Metro Transit charges “by the ride.” The Student Senate wants to be sure to only pay for rides by students who are eligible to ride.

    Students must show their Madison College OneCard ID if asked to do so by a Metro Transit driver. Students may be refused service if unable to show a valid OneCard upon request. Routes 80, 81, 82, 84, and 85 near the UW–Madison are free to all and nobody needs to show ID.

  • New Bus Pass Required Each Semester

    Madison College students who are enrolled in at least one degree-credit class are eligible to receive a bus pass. Active enrollment signifies eligibility for a bus pass and ensures that the only students who ride are those who are paying for the service via their commuter services fee.

    Passes are valid for the semester or summer in which the student is enrolled. Valid dates for use are printed on the front of each bus pass. If a student drops their classes part way through a semester, they are no longer eligible to utilize the bus pass.

  • Write Your Name and ID Number on Pass

    A lost bus pass can only be returned if its owner is known.

    If there is no name and Madison College OneCard ID number on the pass, there is no way to return a lost pass, even though a Good Samaritan has turned it in the past to a Madison College office. Signing the bus pass also ensures that the pass can only be used by the student to whom it was issued.

    Persons unable to produce a matching Madison College OneCard ID along with the bus pass will have the pass confiscated, and the student to whom the pass was originally issued may be held responsible through the Madison College student conduct process.

  • Program Benefits Even Nonusers

    Even though you may not be a bus or shuttle rider, you will benefit from less congestion of vehicles and pedestrians in Madison College parking lots and the city parking structures.

    Likewise, you will experience a reduction of traffic stresses within the City of Madison and communities served by Metro Transit. Just imagine competing for limited parking spaces with thousands more students! The money you pay into the system will support the continuance of the Bus and Para-Transit Program and the Shuttle Program.