Getting from Frederick W. Smith International Airport to the city

The bus costs nothing, and there are five of them

• MATA launched a Zero Fare pilot on 16 November 2025 and has extended it. Every MATA service, fixed route buses, the downtown trolleys and MATAplus paratransit, is free while it runs. MATA says it will announce well in advance if fares return.
• Route 28 Airport is the only service to the terminal, running to the William Hudson Transit Center downtown.
• Weekday departures from the airport: 06:29, 08:29, 10:29, 14:29, 16:29. That is five buses, and a four hour gap across the middle of the day. Miss the 16:29 and there is no later one.
• Saturday: 09:29, 11:29, 13:29, 15:29.
• Sunday: 08:52, 10:07, 11:22, 12:37, 13:52, 15:07, 16:22. Seven departures, every 75 minutes. Sunday is the best day of the week for this bus, which almost no guide will tell you.

Two publishers, two different last buses

• The airport's ground transportation page publishes the route 28 schedule as Monday to Friday 05:45 to 18:29, Saturday 08:45 to 17:29, Sunday 08:45 to 16:29.
• MATA's own current timetable ends the weekday airport departures at 16:29 and the Saturday ones at 15:29. The morning starts match; the evenings do not.
• They disagree, so plan on the earlier figure. Treating 16:29 as the last weekday bus costs you nothing if the airport is right, and saves you a stranded evening if MATA is.
• The airport also links to a MATA page for the timetable that no longer exists. Look route 28 up on matatransit.com instead.

Finding the stop, and everything else

• The MATA stop is on the inner commercial drive on the baggage level. Look for the bright orange MATA bus signs.
• Taxis work from 06:00 until one hour after the last flight arrival, from the centre commercial drive in front of the Concourse B baggage claim. Accessible cabs on request. The airport publishes its taxi tariff only as a scanned PDF with no text layer, so there is no fare to quote; the ground transportation office is on 901-922-8019.
• Uber and Lyft operate, but have moved downstairs to the Interim Commercial Curb on the arrivals and baggage level. Orange signage points to it. The airport expects them to stay there until the fourth quarter of 2027, while the upper driveway is rebuilt.
• Rental cars are in the Ground Transportation Center, one level below baggage claim from Terminal B. Economy parking is free for up to 30 minutes if you are collecting a rental customer.

The airport has a new name

• On 11 August 2026 the airport became Frederick W. Smith International Airport, after the founder of FedEx, whose global hub is here. The three letter code MEM does not change. Signage is being replaced in phases, so both names are in use.