Christmas service reservations open December 11–22
LANSING, Mich. (Dec. 10, 2025) — The Capital Area Transportation Authority will implement several service adjustments during Michigan State University’s winter break and over the holiday season, including limited service on Christmas Day.
MSU Winter Break Service Changes:
During Michigan State University’s winter break, service changes will be in effect Monday, Dec. 15, through Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026.
Spartan Service operating on MSU’s campus will change as follows:
- Weekday service (Routes 30, 31, 33 and 39) will conclude late Friday/early Saturday morning, Dec. 12 & 13.
- Weekend service (Routes 34, 35, 36 Lot Link and Night Owl) will conclude early Monday morning, Dec. 15.
- Route 32 (Commuter Lot/Snyder Hall/Clinical Center) will operate weekdays, 7 a.m. to 7:25 p.m., at a reduced frequency during the break. Buses will depart the MSU-CTC/Ramp 1 every 30 minutes, rather than every 15 minutes.
Service changes will also be in effect for the following routes during the winter break:
- Routes 20, 22 and 23 will operate as usual and travel into the MSU-CTC/Ramp 1 and serve the Shaw and Farm boarding area during the break.
- Route 26 (Abbot/Chandler) weekday service will operate on a 45-minute frequency throughout each day and conclude at 7:15 p.m. each night. Saturday service ends at 7:15 p.m. There is no change in Sunday service.
Regular service will resume Monday, Jan. 12, 2026.
Limited Christmas Day Service:
Limited holiday service will be offered on Christmas Day, Thursday, Dec. 25, while all other CATA services – Fixed-Route, Spec-Tran, Rural Service, Connector, Redi-Ride, Shopping Bus and CATA Rydz – will not operate.
Advance reservations are required for those in need of transportation on Christmas Day.
Curb-to-curb service will be available to the general public from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on a limited basis and will be restricted to the Spec-Tran service boundaries. CATA will attempt to accommodate all ride requests. To view the service area map, visit www.cata.org/holidays.
Trips for Christmas Day must be scheduled during the reservation window, Dec. 11-22. No same-day trips will be allowed. Call 517-394-2282 to reserve a ride. The one-way fare is $2.50. Drivers will accept cash (exact fare), mobile pay, Spec-Tran punch passes or tokens as payment.
Christmas and New Year’s Holiday Closures:
CATA will end operations early for select routes and services on Christmas Eve, Wednesday,
Dec. 24, and New Year’s Eve, Wednesday, Dec. 31. Services will conclude as follows on these days:
- All Connector, Rural and Redi-Ride services will conclude at their regularly scheduled times.
- Routes 6, 13, 46, 48 and the Shopping Bus will conclude at their regularly scheduled times.
- All other fixed routes will generally conclude by 7 p.m., depending on the route. Visit www.cata.org for route-specific details.
- Spec-Tran service will end early with pickups scheduled no later than 6:15 p.m.
- CATA Rydz service will operate as follows:
- On-Demand: As usual until 8 p.m. on Dec. 24 and Dec. 31
- Late-Night: As usual until 11:30 p.m. on Dec. 24 and Dec. 31
- Airport/MSU: As usual until 1 a.m. on Dec. 25 and Jan. 1
In observance of Christmas Day and New Year’s Day, CATA will not operate regular service on Thursday, Dec. 25 and Thursday, Jan. 1, 2026.
The Spec-Tran office will remain open Thursday, Dec. 25, and Thursday, Jan. 1, 2026, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., to assist with post-holiday ride reservations. No same-day trips will be permitted. Call 517-394-2282, log in to myspectran.cata.org or access your account using the MyRideCATA app to reserve a Spec-Tran ride.
CATA routes and services will resume their regular weekday schedules on Friday, Dec. 26 and Friday, Jan. 2, 2026.
For more information, visit www.cata.org, contact Customer Experience at info@cata.org or call 517-394-1000 (Weekdays: 7 a.m.-7 p.m., Weekends: 9 a.m.-5 p.m.).
