City Transport Simulator 2026 releases on April 14 – free upgrade for all owners!
It's been a long time since we've heard anything about City Transport Simulator – but behind the scenes, we've been working intensively on the future of the game. Now we can finally make it official:
City Transport Simulator 2026 will be released on April 14th for PC on Steam, as well as for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S.
The best part: If you already own City Transport Simulator, you will receive CTS 2026 completely free of charge. 🎉
All your DLCs and savegames will be transferred, so you can immediately get started with all the new features.
With City Transport Simulator 2026, a new generation of modern bus and tram simulations begins. Numerous systems have been expanded, optimized, and completely overhauled to make the bus simulator even more realistic, immersive, and vibrant.
Dynamic Weather and Seasons
For the first time, City Transport Simulator 2026 offers a fully dynamic weather and seasons system.
The city changes dynamically throughout the year – from green spring landscapes and hot summer days to autumn leaves and snowy winter roads. During your journeys, you'll experience changing weather conditions such as sunshine, fog, rain, snow, or even thunderstorms.
These weather conditions also directly affect your vehicles. Buses and trams now feature realistic heating, air conditioning, window functions, and windshield wipers. Temperature and weather visibly impact the driving experience, making the transport simulation even more authentic.
Realistic Ticket Sales in Scheduled Service
A frequently requested community feature is finally part of the game: the new realistic ticket system.
In CTS 2026, buses have functional ticket machines, allowing you to sell tickets directly to your passengers. Passengers pay with cash or contactless and react dynamically to your decisions during scheduled service.
Additionally, the new ITCS system supports you during your journey with important information regarding public transport operations, including the next stop or your current punctuality according to the timetable.
This makes the bus simulator even more realistic and conveys an authentic feeling of modern public transport.
Free Roam – Experience the city outside the driver's seat
One of the biggest innovations in City Transport Simulator 2026 is the new Free Roam mode.
For the first time, you can move freely as a pedestrian through the entire city, visit stops, and board AI-controlled buses or trams as a passenger.
You can seamlessly take control of vehicles at any time and drive a bus or tram yourself – completely without a loading screen. You can also hand over vehicles to AI drivers and continue your journey on foot.
This creates a particularly immersive and realistic public transport experience, making the bus simulator much more vibrant.
More Atmosphere and Detail
In addition to the major gameplay features, numerous details have also been revised to make the city appear more realistic.
A new dynamic lighting system creates atmospheric times of day and realistic lighting conditions. Sunrises and sunsets now change depending on the weather and season.
Passengers have also been comprehensively improved. New models, additional voices, and more clothing variations provide significantly more diversity in the cityscape. Passengers react dynamically to their surroundings, using umbrellas in the rain or wearing winter clothes in the snow.
Additionally, numerous animations have been expanded. Drivers move steering wheels and driving levers more realistically, and even oncoming drivers react to you in traffic.
Major Optimizations for Performance and Stability
Another focus of City Transport Simulator 2026 is on performance and stability – especially on consoles.
The AI and vehicle spawning system has been completely revised. Vehicles are dynamically loaded and removed, reducing crashes and improving performance.
AI vehicles also behave more realistically, follow their routes more reliably, and organize themselves automatically at termini.
Many of these improvements may seem small at first glance, but together they create a significantly more immersive and vibrant bus and tram simulation.
Free Upgrade for Existing Players
City Transport Simulator 2026 will be released on April 14th for PC on Steam, as well as for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S.
If you already own City Transport Simulator, you can upgrade to CTS 2026 for free. Your savegames and DLCs will be fully preserved, so you can continue playing with your existing vehicles – now with all the new features, optimizations, and systems.
If you want to support us, be sure to wishlist City Transport Simulator 2026 and follow the latest updates regarding the release of the modern bus simulator. 🚍🚋