Wayne County caught up with Oakland and Macomb counties as voters approved a transit millage that supporters say would connect the region and bolster the economy.
As of Wednesday Aug. 5, with 99% of precincts reporting, 67% of voters cast ballots in favor of the millage, according to unofficial Wayne County election results. It’s a huge shift for the state’s most populous county, where a dozen or so communities had previously opt-ed out of the Suburban Mobility Authority for Regional Transportation (SMART) system.
The millage renews public transportation for communities already in the SMART system and loops in 17 others that had previously opted out of the Suburban Mobility Authority for Regional Transportation (SMART) system. Residents in those 17 communities will pay a new tax.
Supporters have said the proposal would allow people to access jobs and help older adults and those with disabilities travel and feel independent. Opponents argued it’d be an unnecessary expense for taxpayers and launched several efforts to push back against the millage in recent months. Oakland County filled the opt-out gaps in its SMART service in 2022.
The proposal asked voters to authorize the Wayne County Transit Authority to levy a millage to fund public transportation services in Wayne County. That includes operations, maintenance and expanding services for seniors, veterans, people with disabilities and the general public.
Officials and transit advocates celebrated the decision Wednesday morning.
“This is about access, opportunity, and improving lives. For residents who can’t afford a car, are unable to drive a car, or who simply don’t want a car, better transit means independence and mobility. For businesses, it means a stronger workforce. For our region it means growth by attracting young professionals and families,” Wayne County Executive Warren C. Evans said in a statement.
SMART CEO Tiffany Gunter said the expansion would be rolled out in phases and guided by community needs.
“No more opt-outs. No more gaps in the map. That matters for the rider trying to get to a job interview, the senior headed to a doctor’s appointment, the student who needs a reliable way to school,” she said in a statement, early in the morning before total votes were tallied.
Megan Owens, executive director of the advocacy group Transportation Riders United, said “everyone will have the freedom to get around” now.
‘While only ensuring a base level of transit service throughout the County, this win is a critical step towards ensuring everyone can get where they need to go, regardless of whether they drive,” Owens said in a statement to the Free Press.
At .98 mills, the tax translates to $0.98 cents per $1,000 of taxable value for 10 years starting with the 2026 tax year and ending in 2035. That amounts to about $8 a month for a home with a taxable value of roughly $100,000. The millage would replace an expiring one.
The revenue would then be distributed to Wayne County, SMART, the Detroit Department of Transportation (DDOT) and other community and regional transit providers and is estimated would generate roughly $57 million in the first year.
The money raised would go toward continuing existing services and adding services in the previous opt-out communities, Gunter previously told the Free Press. It would allow SMART to add eight new routes, five new route extensions and on-demand service over the course of approximately three years, though that depends on being able to get new vehicles to provide additional service.
Money generated in Detroit — about $8 million a year of the total — would go to the DDOT system. Smaller transit providers funded through SMART, such as Nankin Transit, which serves seniors, would get additional money as well to shore up services.
This would be a new tax for property owners in 17 communities not currently in the SMART system. The 26 other municipalities already in the SMART system wouldn’t see an increase in their millage rate.
Detroit is one of the opt-out municipalities, but DDOT and SMART operate buses in the city.
Robert Cramer, DDOT executive director of transit, told the Free Press in May that if the millage passed, residents would have more mobility and improved access to jobs and opportunities across Wayne County.
“DDOT remains focused on increasing the safety, timeliness and overall quality of our transit system, and would leverage any additional funding toward these shared goals,” he said in a statement at the time. “We will use input from residents and stakeholders to guide how we spend any new revenue sent to DDOT from the Wayne County millage.”
Regional public transit has been a contentious topic for years. In 2025, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed into law a bill that ended the ability of Wayne County communities to opt out of the transit millage that funds SMART.
Which communities are not in the SMART system?
- Belleville
- Brownstown Township
- Canton
- Detroit
- Flat Rock
- Gibraltar
- Grosse Ile Township
- Huron Township
- Livonia
- Northville
- Northville Township
- Plymouth
- Plymouth Township
- Rockwood
- Sumpter Township
- Van Buren Township
- Woodhaven
Which communities are in the SMART system?
- Allen Park
- Dearborn
- Dearborn Heights
- Ecorse
- Garden City
- Grosse Pointe
- Grosse Pointe Farms
- Grosse Pointe Park
- Grosse Pointe Shores
- Grosse Pointe Woods
- Hamtramck
- Harper Woods
- Highland Park
- Inkster
- Lincoln Park
- Melvindale
- Redford Township
- River Rouge
- Riverview
- Romulus
- Southgate
- Taylor
- Trenton
- Wayne
- Westland
- Wyandotte
Take a look at proposed routes here.
This story was updated to add new information. Reach reporter Nushrat Rahman at nrahman@freepress.com.
