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Public Transit Ridership in the United States

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[quote user="schlimm"] [quote user="Sam1"] [quote user="schlimm"] There are 300,000 commuters in the Chicago suburbs who ride Metra daily to and from downtown Chicago.  They choose to do so because we have a long tradition of excellent suburban rail service, which for many people is superior to driving , not because they cannot afford a car or some other reason, such as inaccessibility as suggested by the OP.. [/quote] To get a true picture of transit riders in Chicago, one would have to slice and dice the numbers much more than is feasible from a distance. Nevertheless, it is probably fair to conclude that whilst transit ridership is considerably higher in the Chicago area than the nation as a whole, the majority of people don't use it. The actual motives for why people choose transit, if they have a choice, would require a robust study.  [/quote] 300,000 suburban transit riders daily on heavy suburban commuter rail reduces the already overcrowded expressways and toll roads at rush hour.  This has been the favored practice of many commuters from suburbs to downtown Chicago for many years.  Suburbs that lie near one of the ten or so commuter lines are preferred areas for those who commute because of quicker access to Metra.   The criteria for determining the value of commuter transit does not rest on whether or not a majority use it.  A true measure would be the ridership on rush hour trains.  Try riding most of the Chicago lines and you will find the trains are very crowded, often with standees.  I gather Houston and Dallas did not have that tradition, and it takes time before new alternatives become established. [/quote] Do you mean 300,000 suburban riders or 300,000 passenger trips?  The American Public Transportation Association (APTA) reports passenger trips. There is a big difference, i.e. 300,000 suburban riders translates into approximately 600,000 passenger trips per day whereas 300,000 passenger trips translates into approximately 150,000 customers. The APTA reports all passenger trips, i.e. rush hour and non-rush hour.  Moreover, to be technically correct, one should half the potential numbers that I presented in my earlier post. Most passengers make roundtrips, which means that the passenger trips should be cut in half to get an idea of the percentage of the population that uses public transport. Clearly, as stated previously, the percentage of people in the major cities of the northeast and the upper midwest, in particular, as well as the Bay area, is much higher than the country as a whole. However, even in major metro areas like Chicago and Denver, based on the APTA figures, only a distinct minority of the population use public transport.  Which was one of my original observations. The percentage of people who use public transport is a measure of its value.  An equally important measure would be whether they are willing to pay for it.   I would argue that public transport in the city functions like a utility. It serves a broad segment of the population and should be funded like a public service.  Many of the people who depend on it are relatively poor. But a taxpayer supported commuter rail system for relatively affluent suburbanites strikes me as a bit over the top.
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