Marion Transit System

{{Short description|Provider of mass transportation in Grant County, Indiana}}

{{Infobox Bus transit

| name = Marion Transit System

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| headquarters = 520 E. 6th St.

| locale = Marion, Indiana

| service_area = Grant County, Indiana

| service_type = Bus service, paratransit

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| routes = 5

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| stations = Bus Terminal, 202 S. Adams St.

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| annual ridership= 257,760 (2019)

| website = [https://cityofmarion.in.gov/government/departments/transportation Marion Transit System]

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Marion Transit System (MTS) is the primary provider of mass transportation in Marion, Indiana, with five routes serving the region. As of 2019, the system provided 257,760 rides over 14,708 annual vehicle revenue hours with 5 buses and 1 paratransit vehicle.{{cite web|url=https://www.transit.dot.gov/sites/fta.dot.gov/files/transit_agency_profile_doc/2019/5R02-50485.pdf|title= Marion Transit System Agency Profile|access-date=September 5, 2023}}

Public transit in Marion began with horsecars in 1889, with the Marion Street Railway Co. In 1893, the horsecars were replaced with streetcars, which in turn were replaced by buses in 1947.{{cite web|url=https://www.chicagorailfan.com/aatin1.html|title=Transit Systems in Indiana|access-date=September 5, 2023}} In 2021, a mural was painted on a building across from the bus terminal, depicting an interurban that formerly provided transit service in the city.{{cite news|url=https://www.chronicle-tribune.com/news/mural-creates-community/article_6bfdad8b-9b38-5c37-8f08-1d9ace676f05.html|title=Mural creates community|author=Jaylan Miller|date=November 2, 2021|newspaper=Chronicle-Tribune|access-date=September 5, 2023}} From 2020 through 2022, bus schedules were limited due to the COVID-19 pandemic and later staffing shortages.{{cite news|url=https://www.chronicle-tribune.com/news/staffing-woes-create-change-to-marion-bus-schedules/article_0a5b64bb-f5ee-5a3d-b06e-843d701f452a.html|title=Staffing woes create change to Marion bus schedules|author=Carl Gingerich|date=January 7, 2022|newspaper=Chronicle-Tribune|access-date=September 5, 2023}}