South Bend Transpo

Page was last updated on 11/03/2023.

The South Bend Public Transportation Corporation (d.b.a.: transpo) is the public transit district serving the town of South Bend, IN, as well as the town of Mishawaka, IN. Additionally, the system serves the nearby suburbs of Notre Dame & Roseland.

Agency Snapshot

Established: January 1, 1968.
The agency’s predecessor – the South Bend Railway Company – was founded on May 25, 1885.
Services Provided: Local & Express (fixed-route) Bus, Paratransit Van Service.
Number of Fixed Bus Routes: 20.
Number of Revenue Vehicles: Roughly 50 fixed-route buses. At least 10 Paratransit vans.
Number of Major Transit Hubs: 2.

Photo: South Street Station, transpo’s main transit hub.

NEXT STOPS

Fare Payment
Information

System Map

Agency Website

No, the agency is not going bust – just the old sign. Due to agency rebranding, I’m sure a new sign is being put up here. This is outside the agency’s main terminal.

System Overview

Like many transit systems, transpo operates on a hub-spoke system – where fixed bus routes originate out of a central hub. The system’s main hub is the South Street Station in the downtown South Bend – which was originally designed to be a mulitmodal hub for nearly all of its system routes, Amtrak services, & intercity bus services. However, the Amtrak component never materialized – leaving customers to have to travel 2.5 miles west to the existing Amtrak station. The South Street Station serves Routes 1, 3A, 3B, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 ,9, 10, 11, 12 (Weekday), 12/14 (Saturday), 14 (Weekday), & 16.

The Mishawaka Transfer Center in Mishawaka serves as a secondary hub – serving Routes 1, 9, 11, 15A, 15B, & the Yellow Line route (by the Interurban Trolley) to Elkhart.

Buses operate Monday through Saturday only. There is no service on Sundays & many major holidays.

View the transpo System Map.

System Routes

Select a route name to view the current schedule.

Route 1: Madison/Mishawaka.
Route 3A: Portage via Elwood/Marquette.
Route 3B: Portage via Lathrop/Boland.
Route 4: Lincolnway/Airport.
- Connection to the South Shore Line.
Route 5: North Michigan.
Route 6: South Michigan.
Route 7: Notre Dame/UP Mall.
Route 8: Miami/Scottsdale.
Route 9: Northside/Mishawaka.
Route 10: Western.

Route 11: Southside/Mishawka.
Route 12: Rum Village (Weekdays Only).
Route 12/14: Rum Village/Sample.
- Saturday combined version of Routes 12 & 14.
Route 13: Corby/Town & Country.
Route 14: Sample/Mayflower (Weekdays Only).
Route 15A: UP Mall/Mishawaka via Main.
Route 15B: UP Mall/Mishawaka via Grape.
Route 16: Blackthorn Express/II.
Route 17: The Sweep.
- Weekday-only circulator serving the University of Notre Dame, St. Mary’s College, Holy Cross College, & several other points on interest.

Additionally, transpo operates a Gameday Express shuttle during University of Notre Dame home football games & various K-12 school trippers. Further information about these services can be found on the transpo website when they are active.

Vehicle Fleet

transpo operates a fixed-route bus fleet comprising of Gillig diesel & New Flyer CNG buses – with the former slowly being replaced by the latter.

Disclaimer

While I do my best to keep the information listed in the Transport sections accurate, please keep in mind that schedules, fares, & other information is subject to change without notice. To obtain the latest information, please contact the transit agency directly. If you spot something wrong, please let me know via the Contact form.