The Lawrence Transit System is the municipal public transportation agency in Lawrence, Kansas. It is a coordinated transit system with the City of Lawrence and the University of Kansas, operating Monday through Saturday from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. on most routes.Routes and Maps On election days, rides are free of charge.
Bus Routes Lawrence Transit operates nine routes (1-9) using Lawrence Transit-branded vehicles, which are shown in the route list below. In addition to these routes, there are twelve University of Kansas routes in Lawrence, Kansas (11, 12, 30, 34, 36, 38, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45 and 53) operated using KU-branded vehicles. Most of these routes only operate while KU is in session during the Fall and Spring semesters at KU. Connections to Johnson County Transit Route 510 (K-10 Connector) as well as Greyhound are available at the Central Station.Central Station
Route list №TerminiViaNotes1DowntownEast HillsMassachusetts St, 23rd StInterlined with Route 52Central StationLakeview Rd6th St, LMHInterlined with Route 33Downtown9th St, LMHInterlined with Route 24Wakarusa Dr & 6th StCentral Station, KU Campus5Central StationEast Hills23rd St, HINUInterlined with Route 16Rock Chalk ParkNorth Lawrence6th St, Downtown7DowntownSouth Iowa StHaskell Ave, 27th StInterlined with Route 98Central StationPeaslee TechKU Campus, HINU9South Iowa StClinton Pkwy, Lawrence AveInterlined with Route 7
ADA Services The Lawrence Transit System offers paratransit services (T Lift) to serve the needs of riders who, because of a disability, are unable to use the Lawrence Transit System fixed-route system, and who meet the criteria established by the U.S. Department of Transportation under the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990. The JayLift provides ADA services for KU students, staff and faculty who are permanently or temporarily disabled to get to class or class-related activities.
On-Demand Services A late-night service (Night Line) started June 1, 2013 and provides curb-to-curb, shared ride bus service from 8:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. Monday – Saturday anywhere within Lawrence. The rides must be scheduled in advance, 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m Monday – Saturday. Each ride costs $2.00.Night Line bus service extends public transportation options
A new, fare-free On Demand service launched in 2023, running from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. Monday-Friday and 8 p.m. to midnight on Saturdays. In January 2024, this service was expanded to Sundays as well, and Saturday hours were extended to 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. Trips can be booked using the Lawrence Transit On Demand app, which allows riders to book single trips or multiple reservations at once up to five days in advance.Lawrence Transit launches overnight rides on demand
Policy Makers Lawrence Transit System is a service of the City of Lawrence. Policies for Lawrence Transit system are set by the Lawrence City Commission, with recommendations for the Public Transit Advisory Committee.Public Transit Advisory Committee The University of Kansas Transit Commission, composed of faculty, staff and students, is responsible for campus transportation services; KU on Wheels, JayLift and SafeRide.KU Transit Commission
Fleet Lawrence Transit currently operates a fleet largely composed of Gillig transit buses, along with a number of Ford cutaway buses for lower-ridership routes. In 2020, 2021, and 2022, Lawrence Transit was awarded three consecutive federal grants for electric buses, with the first five units deployed in 2022.Electric Buses Two Gillig BEBs were received in January 2024“Electrify Lawrence”: City of Lawrence Deploys Second Round of Battery Electric Buses and two electric low-floor cutaway buses from Optimal Electric Vehicles were deployed in 2025 on interlined routes 2 and 3.Optimal Electric Vehicles Partners with Lawrence Transit to Deploy Two All-Electric Low-Floor Shuttle Buses In 2024, the Lawrence Transit fleet was updated with a new livery featuring a modernized Lawrence Transit logo, the Phoenix Flame graphic representing the City of Lawrence, as well as denoting special features such as Electric, Hybrid, and On Demand.City bus fleet to have a unified, streamlined look Much of the current Lawrence Transit fleet can be referenced in the table below.
Fleet number(s)PhotoModel YearManufacturerModelPowertrainNotes600-6042022GilligLow Floor Plus EV 40' Livery designed by David Gnojek.605-6062023GilligLow Floor Plus EV 40' Livery designed by Iris Cliff.607-6082024FordE-450 Optimal Electric Vehicles S1 cutaway buses built on Ford E-450 chassis. Livery designed by Tokeya Richardson.809-8132021(built in 2020)FordE-450814-8152023(built in 2022)FordE-450900-9022011GilligLow Floor HEV 40' Cummins ISL9 901 is retired.906-9072015GilligLow Floor 29' Cummins ISL99082015GilligLow Floor HEV 29' Cummins ISL9909-9112020GilligLow Floor 29' Cummins L9944-9452009GilligLow Floor 35' Cummins ISL9 Former KU on Wheels buses.946-9472012GilligLow Floor 40' Cummins ISL9 Former KU on Wheels buses.
Fixed route ridership
The ridership statistics shown here are of fixed route services only and do not include demand response services.
See also Lawrence station List of bus transit systems in the United States
References
External links Lawrence Transit System official site KU on Wheels - University of Kansas bus service