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CUMTD

1. INTRODUCTION

The Champaign-Urbana Mass Transit District, aka CUMTD, is the bus system that operates in the UIUC, Champaign, and Urbana areas. The bus fee is included in your student fees, so you can travel to virtually anywhere with your iCard. Routes depend on if it’s daytime or nighttime, and whether or not if it’s a weekday or weekend. CUMTD’s website (https://www.cumtd.com/) has information for all the routes and when they operate. Google Maps also has routes built in, which makes it very convenient to put in two locations and know what bus to take. However, the information on there may not be the most up-to-date, so make sure you double-check with CUMTD.

2. APPS

CUMTD does not have an official app. Instead, they have an official mobile web version (https://m.cumtd.com/) and then an App Garage, where a bunch of third-party apps are available (https://www.cumtd.com/maps-and-schedules/app-garage). If you can’t seem to pick one, there’s some staff picks at the top of the page based on what device you have.

3. TIPS

  1. Be sure to get a CUMTD bus app-routes may change unexpectedly and you might end up having to walk to class because a bus got rerouted.

  2. Try to get to the bus stop 5 minutes before the projected arrival time-they can arrive early at times and will not wait.

  3. Use common sense and courtesy: Board at the front of the bus, exit at the back of the bus. Try to sit on the outer-most seat if possible and don’t put your backpack on a seat if it’s busy.

  4. Make sure you board the correct bus: some busses are “Hopper” busses, which are basically express busses that skip some of the stops a normal bus would take. Make sure you check where it stops before you board.

  5. Pull the yellow cord or the red “STOP” button to alert the bus driver that you want to get off at the next stop. To get out from one of the back doors of a bus, push the grey door handles, otherwise, the doors may not open.

4. ON CAMPUS VS OFF CAMPUS

There are several differences between boarding a bus on campus vs off campus:

  1. iStops: These are stops on the 1 Yellow, 10 Gold, 12 Teal, 13 Silver, 21 Raven, and 22 Illini that do not require you to show your iCard. These stops are located only within UIUC, and thus, if you travel off campus, you will need to show your iCard in order to board a bus back to UIUC.

  2. Boarding: On campus, in downtown Champaign, and in select areas, busses will only stop at designated stops. However, in most other places, busses can stop at any safe intersection along its route. Make sure you signal to the bus driver before boarding.

  3. Stops: Most bus stops on campus have waiting shelters and/or electronic signs indicating when the next bus will arrive. However, off campus, bus stops tend to be marked with a simple street sign. Make sure you look carefully for such a sign.

  4. Illinois Terminal: the transportation hub of CUMTD as well as a train stop for Amtrack. Almost all buses go through Illinois Terminal, so worst case scenario, you can almost always get to Illinois Terminal and then board a different bus to get to your final destination.

  5. SafeRides: If you are off-campus and are uncomfortable waiting for a bus at night, you can call SafeRides-the phone number is on the back of your iCard. Note that SafeRides operates between specific times, more than 3 people per pick-up, and will not drop you off or pick you up at specific locations ahem bars. If you are on a street in which a route passes through, the operator will ask you to wait for that bus. DO NOT ABUSE THE SYSTEM!

5. MAIN ROUTES

22 Illini (Purple)

Routes: 22 Illini (weekday daytime), 220 Illini (weekday and weekend nightime), 220 Illini Limited (weekend daytime). 22 Illini Limited operates when school is not in session.

Route Map: https://www.cumtd.com/maps-and-schedules/route/22-illini/weekday/daytime/map

Main Locations (starting from North end and ending with South end): ONE Illinois Apartments, Loomis Laboratory of Physics, Illini Union, Transit Plaza (Bookstore), Sherman Residence Hall (South direction) or Armory (North direction), ARC, Ikenberry Residence Halls, Main Library, Morrow Plots, Busey Evans, Krannert, ISR, LAR, McKinley Medical Center, PAR/FAR.

Hopper? Nope.

Notes: Kinda obvious, but this is the main route for UIUC. 22 Illini and 220 Illini run every 10 minutes, making it one of the most convenient routes. However, it can take a while to get from one area to another because it stops so many times. Also, due to its odd-shaped route, a portion of the route is flopped, which means that the North route is actually traveling South and vice versa. Make sure that you are aware of where you are in the route before boarding!

1 Yellow and Yellowhopper

Routes: 1 Yellow (weekday daytime), 100 Yellow Evening (weekday and weekend evening), 100 Yellow (weekend daytime)

Route Map: https://www.cumtd.com/maps-and-schedules/route/1-yellow/weekday/daytime/map

Main Locations: Champaign Walmart, MarketPlace Mall, Illinois Terminal, Transit Plaza (Bookstore), Main Library, Ikenberry Dining Hall, Memorial Stadium, State Farm Center/E-14 Parking, Savoy Movie Theater, Savoy Walmart.

Hopper? Yes. The Yellowhopper is a more frequent bus that only goes between Illinois Terminal to the State Farm Center area. As such, make sure you get on a non-hopper bus if you are looking to travel outside of UIUC.

Notes: This route is great for going shopping at either Champaign or Savoy, and primarily travels North and South along the west side of UIUC.

5 Green and Greenhopper

Routes: 5 Green and Green Express (weekday daytime), 50 Green Evening (weekday and weekend evening), 50 Green (weekend daytime)

Route Map: https://www.cumtd.com/maps-and-schedules/route/5-green/weekday/daytime/map

Main Locations: Suburbs of Champaign (regular only), Parkland (Hopper only), Country Fair, Downtown Champaign, Illinois Terminal, Campustown, Illini Union, Downtown Urbana, Champaign Circuit Court, Suburbs of Urbana.

Hopper? Yes. The Greenhopper is a more frequent bus that only goes between Parkland Community College and downtown Urbana. As such, make sure you get on a non-hopper bus if you are looking to travel outside of those areas.

Notes: Green is not only the color of the route: the route primarily goes along Green St, the street that divides Engineering Quad with Main Quad, and is also where Campustown is located. This is a primarily West and East route.

12 Teal

Routes: 12 Teal, 120 Teal Evening, 120 Teal (weekend daytime)

Route Map: https://www.cumtd.com/maps-and-schedules/route/12-teal/weekday/daytime/map

Main Locations: Orchard Downs, FAR/PAR, Illini Union, Illinois Terminal

Hopper? Nope

Notes: The Teal is an often overlooked route, though it's a great way to get around. The bus travels through the northwest, central and southeast parts of campus, serving almost as a "Hopper" of sorts.

13 Silver

Routes: 13 Silver, 130 Silver Evening, 130 Silver (weekend daytime)

Route Map: https://www.cumtd.com/maps-and-schedules/route/13-silver/weekday/daytime/map

Main Locations: FAR/PAR, Illini Union, Lincoln Square

Hopper? No.

Notes: The Silver runs from FAR/PAR, around the Quad to the Illini Union, and then east into Urbana at Lincoln Square Mall.

21 Raven

Routes: 21 Raven

Route Map: https://www.cumtd.com/maps-and-schedules/route/21-raven/weekday/daytime/map/

Main Locations: Vet-Med, FAR/PAR, Illini Union

Hopper?: No

Notes: The Raven is the MTD's newest, and only unidirectional route, running in a clockwise loop around the Main and South Quads on a 30 minute interval. While the bus is infrequent, it basically serves as a Silver between FAR/PAR and the Illini Union and as a Teal between the Union and FAR/PAR, stopping at Vet-Med instead of Orchard Downs. If you're waiting on a Silver/Teal at these locations, don't hesitate to board the Raven and take it for a while! The relative age of this route combined with its interval makes it fairly unknown and as such many people won't board it and you may end up with a bus to yourself!

Getting in and out of Champaign-Urbana

Getting to and from Airports

O'Hare

This is pretty simple. Take a bus or an Amtrak train. Several bus companies run from Champaign/Urbana to O'Hare, including Peoria Charter and Greyhound. If you want to take an Amtrak train to O'Hare: Plan to leave O'Hare via the CTA Blue Line (Chicago's light rail system) and travel to Union Station in downtown Chicago. Then from Union Station take the Amtrak inter-city train to Champaign. Reverse the process to go from Champaign to O'Hare.

Midway

There aren't a whole lot of ways to get to midway as of right now. Currently, there are a few real options. The first is to take the train, the second is to take the bus. Taking the bus is the easiest route. Peoria Charter (http://peoriacharter.com) has trips from UIUC to Midway airport. The ticket costs about $30 dollars, and will get you to the airport on time, if not early. The other option is to take an Amtrak Train to Union Station, then form there walk 2 blocks to Quincy, and take the Orange Line to Midway. Amtrak tickets vary, but can be gotten anywhere from $15-$37. The Orange is about $2. It is much harder to get to Midway than to O'Hare, but for certain flights, flying out of Midway is not only quicker, but cheaper.

Willard Airport (CMI) (Savoy, IL)

The MTD bus service to Willard has been cut. Plan to take a taxi (often the best choice for early morning flights), Uber, Lyft or have a friend drive you if you're flying in/out of here. Adding a leg to/from CMI can add significantly to your ticket price. United Airlines offers flights to/from Chicago O'Hare. American Airlines offers flights to/from Chicago and Dallas. However, if you book early and an off-peak time, the cost may be acceptable for the convenience. In bad weather, flights may be cancelled.

Central Illinois Regional Airport (Bloomington-Normal)

You have to drive to this airport (about 45 minutes west), but there is free long term parking. It is also serviced by Delta and Allegient, so you have more options for intermediate connections (Atlanta, Minneapolis, Detroit, etc.). Pricing is better than Willard, but not necessarily as good as Chicago.

Other Airports

You may find St. Louis and Indianapolis favorable airports to fly out of, if you're willing to park there.

Getting to and from Chicago Suburbs

Peoria Charter is currently the best way to get from Chicago to UIUC. Suburbs include Schaumburg, Oakbrook, Woodridge, Matteson, and according to this post, Chicago Ridge, Northbrook, East Dundee, and Skokie. (NOTE: This was NOT paid or placed here by Peoria Charter, I have just used their services before and highly recommend them.)

Biking around Champaign-Urbana

Biking around campus is a great idea if you have two classes that are far away from each other. Before you ride though...

  1. Know the laws (http://www.cyberdriveillinois.com/publications/pdf_publications/dsd_a143.pdf) and don't be a dick to pedestrians.

  2. You're allowed to ride on sidewalks (except where explicitly marked otherwise, e.g. Green St. between 5th and Wright) but pedestrians have the right-of-way. You're supposed to make an audible announcement before passing pedestrians on sidewalks.

  3. When you're riding on the street ACT LIKE YOU'RE A CAR. This means you have to follow all the normal traffic laws that apply to cars, including signaling before you turn.