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Monday, March 11, 2013

Transportation Transit Ridership Hits Second Highest Level Since 1957

Posted by Goldy on Mon, Mar 11, 2013 at 11:28 AM

The number of Americans riding public transit in 2012 increased to the second highest level since 1957. And the growth in ridership would have been even stronger if not for the near total shutdown of services on the transit-heavy East Coast thanks to Superstorm Sandy.

Altogether, U.S. transit ridership rose 1.49 percent, with passengers taking 10.52 billion trips on trains, buses and commuter rail in 2012.

The increase was universal across the different modes of transit.

There were 1.42 percent more trips on heavy rail such as subways, 4.47 percent more on light rail, and 0.52 percent more on commuter rail than in 2011. Meanwhile, bus ridership grew 1.2 percent. Some of the light rail rise came from cities expanding or creating lines.

With 10.7 percent growth, Sound Transit was one of six light rail systems to see double-digit ridership increases last year.

The gradually recovering economy is of course creating demand for more commuter trips. But rising gas prices and crowded highways are no doubt the main factors driving more commuters to choose transit. And neither gas prices nor traffic are likely to get better in the future.

And to those devout drivers in the comment thread who scoff that riders should pay the full cost of transit—just imagine how much worse your commute would be with another 10.52 billion car trips crowding America's roads?

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Now would be an excellent time to slash funding for Metro (by 17%), just we did last year in Pierce County (by 34%). So clever. What a fucked-up state this is turning into.

Posted by Fnarf

on March 11, 2013 at 11:45 AM

Time to shut down all traffic in Downtown Seattle with a partially-funded carbon-increasing capacity-reducing unwise Deep Tunnel of Doom!

Bikes ftw!

(cause the rest of you are SOL)

Posted by Will in Seattle

on March 11, 2013 at 11:56 AM

The really astonishing thing in this story, which Reuters damn near buried and Goldy gave more prominence, is that despite all the enormous growth in population and roads, we just topped a transit record set in 1957.

That shows clearly just how much dismantling of choices (particularly streetcar and interurban, I'd guess) has gone on in that time period—even now, with density and commute times being the primary drivers, we're just creeping back to offering appealing options to equivalent numbers of commuters.

Posted by rob!

on March 11, 2013 at 12:04 PM

@3 Trains vs. Planes for regional travel. That explains 1957. The Jet Age, and all that.

@1 Don't forget SnoHoCo's Community Transit cutting 1/3 of their service since 2008. That forced me to buy a car after 10k+ bus trips over 15 years. Never going back to standing in the rain waiting for buses that may or may not come.

Posted by Sir Vic on March 11, 2013 at 12:31 PM

I think Goldy's last sentence sort of erroneously implies that drivers aren't subsidized. I don't know what the exact costs are, but I'm sure the driving-alone-commute subsidy is double-takingly high.

Posted by shotsix on March 11, 2013 at 12:38 PM

@5 +1

Not only are the roads and associated infrastructure subsidized, but the health costs from pollution are enormous.

Posted by Ebenezer on March 11, 2013 at 2:02 PM

Because of my varied work locations and schedule, I rarely use buses. But even as a driver, I get tremendous benefit from buses. I want to cheer every time I see a bus. Every bus I see full of people means 50 less cars on the road.

If anything, buses should be more heavily subsidized. More buses = less traffic.

Posted by Reverse Polarity on March 11, 2013 at 4:37 PM

Sound Transit funding has to increase. I want to see light rail extend from Blaine to Portland. The number one complaint of businesses operating in this region is traffic. It inhibits employees from getting to work.

It also ceates a paradox. we are, arguably, the most environmentally-friendly part of the United States. And yet we all want cars, which pollute the air with CO2, the soil with carcinogens and spilt gasoline. They cause deaths from vehicular collisions. And it locks people who cannot drive, due to age or infirmity, from being able to lead independent and healthy lives.

We need to link the Central Link to Tacoma, and build a transit corridor running along I-5from the Canadian border to the Oregon border. We need to complete the Columbia River Crossing and connect to Portland's MAX. We need to extend another route between Seattle and Spokane. And this is way past overdue

Posted by Tacoma Traveler on March 11, 2013 at 5:53 PM

U.S. population, 1957: 172 million
U.S. transit trips, 1957: 10.5+ billion

U.S. population 2012: 313 million
U.S. transit trips 2012: 10.5 billion

Wow!

Posted by Unbrainwashed on March 12, 2013 at 6:41 PM