Why has public transit ridership declined in the United States?
Abstrak
Between 2012 and 2018, bus ridership in the United States declined 15% and rail ridership declined 3%. These losses are widespread and in contrast to trends in other countries. Using data from 215 Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, we identify the factors responsible for this decline and quantify the contribution of each. We show that expanded transit service and land-use changes increased ridership 4.7% on bus and 10.7% on rail. However, losses due to other factors exceed these gains. Ride-hailing is the biggest contributor to transit ridership decline over this period, reducing bus ridership by 10%. Ride-hailing’s effect on rail varies by metropolitan area size: it has little effect on rail ridership in the largest metropolitan areas but decreases rail ridership 10% in mid-sized metropolitan areas. Lower gas prices and higher fares contribute to lower transit ridership, as do higher incomes, more teleworking and higher car ownership. By providing a clear understanding of the causes of transit ridership decline, our research provides the foundation on which communities can craft an effective response to the problem.
Topik & Kata Kunci
Penulis (6)
Gregory D. Erhardt
J. Hoque
Vedant S. Goyal
Simon J. Berrebi
C. Brakewood
K. Watkins
Akses Cepat
- Tahun Terbit
- 2022
- Bahasa
- en
- Total Sitasi
- 125×
- Sumber Database
- Semantic Scholar
- DOI
- 10.1016/j.tra.2022.04.006
- Akses
- Open Access ✓