Eau Claire Transit is a mass transportation provider in the Eau Claire, Wisconsin metropolitan area. The system consists of fifteen core routes and primarily serves the cities of Eau Claire and Altoona. Service frequency varies from thirty minutes to one hour depending on the route and time of day. There is no service on Sundays or Saturday evenings.
The history of transit in the city began in 1879 when the first horse-drawn trolleys operated by the Eau Claire City Railway Co. began service. Eau Claire was the third city in Wisconsin to adopt the method of transport. The city was also one of the first in the United States to adopt the use of electric-powered trolleys in the 1880s, and the first in the country to heat trolley cars using electricity, a development influenced by the state's climate.
However, the system started to decline by the mid-1920s and the first buses started replacing the streetcar lines in 1930. Three years later, buses had completely replaced the trolley network and the rail lines were abandoned. This transition was an early example of what would become a broader trend across the nation, where buses were viewed as a more financially prudent option compared to the fixed routes and infrastructure required for trolleys. Near the end of the decade, due to financial difficulties, the city sold the network to an area investor and was operated as Eau Claire Transportation Co. The company would continue to run the regions transit system for the next several decades until the mid 1970s when it was sold back to the city and renamed Eau Claire Transit.
In 1985, the city built a transit center in the downtown area, which was intended to be a temporary location until a permanent transit center could be constructed. The temporary center would last for over 36 years. In the fall of 2021, construction of a new transit center began on the same site as the temporary 1985 transit center. The transit center opened in September 2025 after numerous construction delays.
The Eau Claire Transit Center located in the downtown area is the beginning and end point for the majority of the bus routes. The only routes that do not layover at the center are those that directly serve the University of Wisconsin- Eau Claire.
One of the main features of the bus system is the interlining of routes, which means that the same bus can serve different routes at different times. For instance, the bus that runs on route 2 becomes route 12 (and vice versa) after stopping at the Transit Center on a half-hourly interval. Similarly, route 5 and route 15 share the same bus, as well as several other route pairs. Longer routes with lower frequencies generally do not interline and layover at the Transit Center once per hour.
The routes serving the UWEC campus area are primarily funded and designed by the University. Buses serving the campus layover in front of the Davies Center or Centennial Hall every 15âÂÂ45 minutes, rather than at the Transit Center. Route 9 does stop briefly at the Transit Center to enable direct transfers with the main network. These routes do not run during summer recess and have reduced service during winter break; there is no service on weekends or holidays. All Eau Claire Transit bus routes are free to UWEC students and faculty:
The agency operates two express routes that offer limited service on days when the Eau Claire Area School District (ECASD) is in session. These routes also provide commuter service to other public entities.
Eau Claire Transit also partners with various community groups to provide two free "Pool Express" routes on weekday afternoons during ECASD summer break.
In early 2026, a short express service was introduced on a trial basis aimed at improving access between downtown community resources. Branded "DRC Express", it operates from Seaver Street to Dewey Street via the Transit Center, with a return trip in the evening.
Northern Lite is an on-demand microtransit pilot service focused on Eau ClaireâÂÂs northeast side. It was launched in July 2025 and operates during the agency's weekday core route hours. Trips that extend beyond the coverage area require a transfer at the Transit Center. The service is operated under contract by Via Transportation and financed through American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) grant funding.
Until 2021, Eau Claire Transit had been operating out of a 1985 transit center, which had been planned as a temporary location until a permanent transit center could be built. However, this arrangement lasted for 36 years. In 2018, the city was awarded a $5 million Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grant for the project by the US Department of Transportation.
The new transit center began construction on September 17, 2021, on the same site as the temporary facility built in 1985. To provide a transfer point during construction, a temporary facility was established at South Farwell Street and Gray Street, just east of the site, in a surface parking lot. The temporary facility opened on September 2, 2021, and was originally scheduled to remain in use until winter 2023, but its closure was delayed until fall 2025. Both the temporary site and the new transit center include dedicated bus bays for each route, a first for Eau Claire.
The new transit center features public restrooms, a climate controlled lobby, a staffed ticket kiosk, and offices for transit staff and law enforcement. Above the center, the mixed-use development incorporates a parking garage and residential units. Around 40 of the 88 units are planned as workforce housing, meaning the rent will be considered affordable for those making between 80%âÂÂ100% of the median income in the county. The city initially partnered with Merge Urban Development Group for the project. However, the developer withdrew in late 2021. The development was subsequently taken over by Impact Seven, a Rice Lake based nonprofit that specializes in affordable housing. Due to this change, rents will remain below the area median income, though will no longer be eligible for subsidies.
The transit portion of the project was scheduled to be complete in early 2023, however due to funding and construction delays it wasn't finished until late September 2025. Due to the high construction costs in 2021 and 2022, city contributed $9.55 million to the project instead of the original $1.25 million. An estimate from 2019 had estimated the value of the project at $23.5 million.