Events › Rosa Parks Tribute Bus

Marking the 70th anniversary year of the Montgomery Bus Boycott, CATA honored Rosa Parks’ legacy with a tribute bus. It debuted at the Capitol on Transit Equity Day, observed annually on Parks birthday, February 4. The day is dedicated to promoting fair, affordable and accessible public transportation for all.

To continue honoring Rosa Parks and engaging the community, CATA will make the tribute bus available at additional events throughout the year. The CATA bus, wrapped to resemble the original bus preserved at The Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation in Dearborn, will be available for free public tours while parked at the East Lansing Public Library on Saturday, February 28, from 10am-2pm.

Inside the tribute bus, visitors can view a historical timeline of the civil rights movement displayed along the interior panels. Rosa Parks’ silhouette appears in the window, and her seat is marked with an honorary cover, creating a powerful visual reminder of her role in history.

“Rosa Parks’ courage changed the course of history and forever linked public transportation to the pursuit of equity,” said CATA Chief Executive Officer Bradley T. Funkhouser. “Sharing this tribute bus with the public is a way to honor that legacy while reinforcing the role transit continues to play in expanding access and opportunity in our communities.”

The tribute bus commemorates Parks’ pivotal act on December 1, 1955, in Montgomery, Alabama, when she refused to give up her seat to a white passenger. That moment sparked the Montgomery Bus Boycott, led by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., which began December 5, 1955, and lasted 381 days, ending on December 20, 1956, when the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling that segregation on public buses was unconstitutional went into effect.

“This tribute bus was designed to bring an important chapter of our history to life,” said CATA Board Chair Nathan Triplett. “As a museum-on-wheels, it invites people to learn, reflect and rededicate ourselves to the work of building a more inclusive future.”

Learn more at www.cata.org/RosaParksTribute.