MTA ridership slips as gas prices fall

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority just released their statistics for October ridership: with the exception of the subway, ridership fell slightly from September as gas prices began their free-fall.

The agency's press release is below. They put a different on the numbers, pointing out accurately that ridership overall is up over a year ago. So, it depends how you look at it. The chart at right shows ridership on the Blue Line to help offer some perspective. (Click on it to see a larger image).

Quickly, here are the September and October numbers:

MTA buses: From 1,253,620 in September to 1,222,589 in October.
Subway: From 149,699 in Sept. to 154,935 in Oct.
Blue Line: From 84,917 in Sept. to 80,577 in Oct.
Green Line: From 45,346 in Sept. to 41,746 in Oct.
Gold Line: From 25,511 in Sept. to 24,004 in Oct.
Orange Line: From 27,987 in Sept. to 25,428 in Oct.

You can see the numbers from the past three Septembers at Metro's website.

This trend of falling ridership seems common. Metrolink, for example, went from 49,261 average weekday riders in September to 48,629 in October. But in Oct. 2007, Metrolink was carrying 44,448 riders each weekday.

One exception is the Orange County Transportation Authority, which set a record for ridership on its buses in October. See Thursday's post, which explains the agency is actually holding onto 150 old buses for the next time gas prices spike.

The Metro press release on their October numbers is after the jump.

--Steve Hymon

The press release from Metro:

Public Transit Helps Recession-Strapped Commuters Save

            L.A. METRO RIDERSHIP ON UPSWING DESPITE FALLING GAS PRICES 

                  The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) today announced that bus and rail ridership increased on a year-over-year basis despite plunging gas prices.

                  Average weekday boardings on Metro Rail jumped 16.62 percent in October 2008 compared with the same period last year while Metro Bus ridership is up 4 percent. October weekday ridership on the Metro Orange Line in the San Fernando Valley is up 6.72 percent compared to last year.

                  Overall, there were 301,262 average weekday boardings on the Metro Red, Purple, Blue, Gold, and Green lines last month compared to 258,333 boardings a year earlier. Subway ridership on the Metro Red and Purple lines between downtown Los Angeles and North Hollywood with a spur to Wilshire and Western led the way with 154,935 boardings, up 20.87 percent. The Metro Blue Line from downtown Los Angeles to Long Beach followed with 80,577 boardings, up 9.34 percent. Next came the Metro Green Line between Norwalk and El Segundo, averaging 41,746 weekday boardings, up 9.93 percent. The Metro Gold Line linking downtown Los Angeles and Pasadena had 24,004 boardings, up 29.87 percent. 

                  Directly operated Metro Bus ridership in October 2008 averaged 1,222,589 boardings compared to 1,175, 256 in October 2007. That’s up 4.03 percent. The Metro Orange Line transitway averaged 25,428 boardings last month, up 6.72 percent over last year.

                 The ridership increases come in spite of the sharp drop in gasoline prices and is a strong indication that L.A.’s public transit system continues to be a low-cost transportation solution for more Angelenos faced with a troubled economy. The fare to ride Metro bus and rail lines is only $62 a month, or $744 a year.

                                                                                                         

                  The American Public Transportation Association (APTA) recently reported that a person living in Los Angeles could save $856 per month, or $10,268 per year by taking public transit instead of driving based on current gas prices and parking rates. APTA’s report reveals how much a person can save by taking public transportation and living with one less car in his or her household. Metro also offers vanpool and carpool programs that, likewise, save commuters significant transportation dollars.

                  For additional information about Metro rideshare programs, go to Metro.net or call 1-800 COMMUTE.

Comments

[FY]

There are many factors contributing to sometimes fluctuating transit ridership levels and one month does not a pattern make. The drastic change in economic climate being but one. Still, it's plain to see the link between gas prices and ridership as a major driving factor (pun intended). To question otherwise begs intellectual honesty. Why are low gas taxes so sacrosanct and cheap gas an entitlement?

[reader]

Do these counts take population growth into account? Doesn't LA County grow by about 100K people a year? I believe transit ridership is increasing, but a more detailed picture might be nice.

[KateNonymous]

Does this mean I'll be able to get a seat on the Rapid bus now?

[Rich]

Yeah it's most important to compare year-over-year results due to seasonal commuting patterns.

Just like the "summer driving season" the media loves to mention, transit ridership fluctuates month to month. If we see a general uptick in overall ridership, that's a win.

Can't wait to see the stats once the Gold and Expo lines open over the next couple years!

[Brigham]

Interesting to see that the subway in LA is the only form of transit that actually increased by about 5,000. One of the reasons for this could be that it's actually a superior way of traveling in a dense urban environment. It is completely grade-separated all the way. It's fast and it's "Big City." Buses get stuck and light rail can be slow sometimes.

[Gary Kavanagh]

Couldn't this have as much to do with seasonal transportation demand changes as it does the price of gas? There are peak driving seasons, why wouldn't there be a similar trend in transit. Without looking at all the data and trending, I think it's kind of a lazy association to say hey gas went down so that must be why transit ridership dipped.

[lsm]

I do not miss high gas prices when most of the money went to unfriendly regimes overseas and jacked up our trade deficit. I could appreciate high gas prices if most of the money came back to benefit us. An appropriately protected and invested gas tax could provide the boons to which exlexia referred and also help rebuild our community.

[eclexia]

About once a week I drive the 101 through Hollywood at 6:30pm. For several over summer months there was no congestion to speak of. Now for the last five weeks it's been a 5mph crawl, each week getting heavier.

I miss high gas prices.