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LOS ANGELES (Oct. 11, 2024) –L.A. Metro reached a milestone in September, averaging more than one million weekday riders for the first time since before the pandemic. This milestone also marks the 22nd consecutive month of year-over-year ridership growth for the agency. Additionally, average bus ridership in September exceeded 800,000 weekday boardings, a post-pandemic ridership record for the bus system.
“A million boardings a day is a major milestone. It’s also a reminder that while we have to prepare for the World Cup and the Olympics, every single day hundreds of thousands of people here in LA County are using our buses and trains to get around, and our commitment is to them,” said Metro Board Chair and LA County Supervisor Janice Hahn. “We owe them a safe, dependable, enjoyable system, whether they’re on a bus, a train platform, or riding a train. My focus will remain safety and our riders’ experience, so they know they can count on Metro to be there for them when they need it.”
Metro’s combined bus and rail ridership in September reached 86.4 percent of its September 2019 pre-pandemic ridership level, which exceeds the nationwide transit ridership average of 76 percent of pre-pandemic levels. Average weekday boardings on Metro reached 83.6 percent of September 2019 pre-pandemic levels and 96.6 percent of the pre-pandemic level on weekends.
“Thanks to the more than 12,000 dedicated public servants who work hard, day and night, rain or shine, Metro is recovering faster than almost any large transit agency in America,” said Metro CEO Stephanie Wiggins. “This 1 million-weekday-rider milestone is a testament to the enormous effort we’ve undertaken to make our system cleaner, safer, easier, more comfortable and more reliable for all the Angelenos who rely on us every day.”
Bus Ridership
The Metro bus system saw 20,912,410 trips in September, marking a 6.9 percent ridership increase compared to September 2023. Average weekday bus ridership was 804,279 in September, the highest bus ridership Metro has seen since February 2020. On average, 534,373 trips were taken on Metro buses on Saturdays in September, while an average of 448,223 trips were taken on Sundays. September’s weekend bus ridership now stands at 96.3 percent of its September 2019 re-pandemic level.
Ridership on Metro’s two Bus Rapid Transit lines also increased in September. Ridership on the J Line, which runs on dedicated lanes on the 10 and 110 freeways from El Monte to San Pedro, rose 8.3 percent in September 2024 compared to September 2023. Weekend ridership on the J Line exceeded its September 2019 pre-pandemic level by 6.4 percent in September 2024. Ridership on the G Line, which serves the San Fernando Valley, rose by 3.4 percent.
Rail Ridership
Rail boardings grew by nearly 10 percent in September 2024 over September 2023, and Metro’s rail ridership now stands at 85.1 percent of its September 2019 pre-pandemic level. Weekday rail boardings grew by 11.7 percent year-over year, while weekend rail ridership grew 4.81 percent year over year. Weekend rail ridership in September now stands at 99.4 percent of its September 2019 pre-pandemic ridership levels.
Metro’s light rail system drove September’s ridership growth. Ridership on the A Line grew 16.2 percent year-over-year, while ridership on the E Line grew 18 percent year-over-year in September. Ridership on the C Line grew 10.7 percent while ridership on the K Line grew 4.1 percent.
Strong Weekend Ridership Continues
Leisure riders continue to be a driver of overall ridership growth, especially on the weekends. In September, weekend rail ridership reached 99.4 percent of its pre-pandemic level with weekend bus boardings reaching 96.3 percent of pre-pandemic September 2019 weekend ridership levels.
Student Ridership Growth
In September, Metro’s GoPass Program, which provides a free transit pass to K-14 students at participating schools, had 1,666,405 boardings, a three percent increase over September 2023, which saw 1,610,215 students boarding. September’s GoPass boardings marked a 77.7 percent month-over-month increase over August as students headed back to school. Metro’s GoPass team continues outreach and meets with new schools weekly to enroll more schools in the program.
Information on Metro’s reduced fare programs, including discounts for low-income persons and families, seniors, persons with disabilities and students, can be found at: metro.net/riding/fares/
Public Safety on Metro
Metro continues its ongoing work to improve public safety with a three-point plan:
- Keep our employees and customers safe and ensure they feel safe through an increased visible presence of uniformed personnel, station improvements and improved bus safety measures;
- Ensure the system is being used only for its intended purpose of transit through fare gate improvements and removal of trespassers; and
- Continue to partner with the County, the Cities and Regional Agencies to address societal issues such as homelessness, untreated mental illness, drug addiction.
As part of this strategy, Metro’s law enforcement partners have expanded their visible presence on the rail system, and more Transit Security Officers (TSOs) have been added to enforce Metro’s Customer Code of Conduct rules on both the bus and rail system. As part of the MTS surge, Metro Transit Security Bus Safety Teams (BSTs) performed end-of-line operations during late-night “Owl” service on some of the busiest bus lines. Metro Ambassadors are also deployed on Metro’s six rail lines and five of the busiest bus lines, to provide support to customers and keep a watchful eye out for problems.
About Metro
The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) is building the most ambitious transportation infrastructure program in the United States and is working to greatly improve mobility through its Vision 2028 Plan. Metro is the lead transportation planning and funding agency for L.A. County and carries a million boardings daily on four light rail and two subway lines and 119 bus lines utilizing more than 2,000 low-emission buses.
Stay informed by following Metro on The Source and El Pasajero at metro.net, facebook.com/losangelesmetro, X.com/metrolosangeles and instagram.com/metrolosangeles.
