USA's Busiest Light Rail Systems

[fflint]

APTA has released its quarterly report on American transit ridership, and here are, as of 4th quarter 2011, the country's 20 busiest light rail systems ranked by average weekday ridership:

1. Boston - 233,300
2. San Francisco - 162,400
3. Los Angeles - 154,500
4. Portland - 126,500
5. Philadelphia - 110,100
6. San Diego - 103,400
7. Dallas - 83,400
8. Denver - 66,800
9. Newark - 65,000 *
10. Salt Lake City - 59,100
11. St. Louis - 52,300
12. Phoenix - 41,300
13. Houston - 36,100
14. San Jose - 32,900
15. Minneapolis - 30,300
16. Seattle - 27,800
17. Baltimore - 27,200
18. Buffalo - 24,500
19. Pittsburgh - 24,200
20. New Orleans - 19,700

Note: Sacramento wasn't included in this report's data. Last report had Sacramento RT weekday ridership at 45,300--if ridership stayed the same it would rank Sacramento at #12

* APTA did not provide a weekday number for Newark, but did report total ridership coming in just under Denver's

[s.p.hansen]

I can't for the life of me understand why Newark, New Jersey can't get their shit together enough to report their quarterly numbers like everyone else (it's been years).

[fflint]

Originally Posted by s.p.hansen

I can't for the life of me understand why Newark, New Jersey can't get their shit together enough to report their quarterly numbers like everyone else (it's been years).

They did report quarterly, but APTA notes average weekday ridership stats for Newark are 'not available.'

[s.p.hansen]

Originally Posted by fflint

They did report quarterly, but APTA notes average weekday ridership stats for Newark are 'not available.'

Help me understand. How could I, perhaps open the PDF reports and find their numbers for the past two years?

[Nouvellecosse]

Archives of their older reports available here.

[s.p.hansen]

Originally Posted by Nouvellecosse

Archives of their older reports available here.

Yeah thanks, I make these lists all the time using these reports; I know how to find them. In the PDFs you will see Newark, NJ comes up as N/A for Average Weekday Ridership.

Again, what is their deal? Are they like a slumlord with their transit system? Where are you people getting a number like 65,000?

[Nexis4Jersey]

Originally Posted by s.p.hansen

I can't for the life of me understand why Newark, New Jersey can't get their shit together enough to report their quarterly numbers like everyone else (it's been years).

Its NJT , they can never get there ridership numbers together....its not Newark. They combine both the Hudson Bergen LRT which they say is 54,000 , and Newark LRT which is 21,000....then you have the Riverline which is 11,000 , that's what they told the RPA and few other groups.... If you add in the Bus network , Newark is around 150,000....

[fflint]

Originally Posted by s.p.hansen

Where are you people getting a number like 65,000?

I didn't want to leave out one of the nation's busiest light rail systems from the list, so I just made a quick and dirty estimate based on similar numbers from Denver's agency. Denver reported its October 2011 ridership (the first month of the quarter, right next to average weekday ridership in the report) as 1,884,700 passeners, and reported an average for the entire quarter of 66,800 per weekday. NJT reported October 2011 ridership as 1,865,800. I simply rounded down to 65,000. Anyone who wants a go at a better weekday ridership average for NJT's light rail system is certainly entitled to do so.

[Nexis4Jersey]

Hmmm , I thought NJT ridership was 900,000 , I know when you factor in the private bus operators which are subcontracted by NJT it grows to 1.8Million. Rail Ridership in NJ as of 2011 is 540,120 with NJT , PATCO and PATH....

[fflint]

^Patco and PATH are heavy rail--see the other thread!

[LosAngelesSportsFan]

In about a month or so, LA will pass SF and by 2015, Boston.

[JDRCRASH]

And by 2019, it might even catch Calgary.

Just wait. All we need is a Measure R2, and Monterrey wil be in our sights.

[SnyderBock]

Next year, Denver's West Corridor LRT line opens. It's projected ridership of around 30,000 weekday passengers. That will push Denver up near 100,000 average weekday passengers, right behind Philadelphia and San Deigo. 2013 won't be a full year with that West line operational though, so it'll probably be 2014, before Denver threatens 100,000 average weekday LRT passengers, for yearly totals. Next year will be a good year to look close at Denver's quartly reports though.

[jaxg8r1]

Portland has another line under construction as well (Orange line), with discussions of a another line in SW Portland as well.

Also, Portland streetcar ridership (if considered a form of lightrail) is around 10k per weekday.

[Nexis4Jersey]

My 2030 Projections based on future development around lines and extensions...

1. Boston - 233,300 > 290,000 (2030)
2. San Francisco - 162,400 > 215,000 (2030)
3. Los Angeles - 154,500 > 630,000 (2030)
4. Portland - 126,500 > 175,000 (2030)
5. Philadelphia - 110,100 > 272,000 (2030)
6. San Diego - 103,400 > 150,000 (2030)
7. Dallas - 83,400 > 142,000 (2030)
8. Denver - 66,800 > 132,000 (2030)
9. Jersey City-Newark - 65,000 > 205,000 (2030)
10. Salt Lake City - 59,100 > 102,000 (2030)
11. St. Louis - 52,300 > 147,000 (2030)
12. Phoenix - 41,300 > 115,000 (2030)
13. Houston - 36,100 > 147,000 (2030)
14. San Jose - 32,900 > 72,000 (2030)
15. Minneapolis - 30,300 > 139,000 (2030)
16. Seattle - 27,800 > 280,000 (2030)
17. Baltimore - 27,200 > 105,000 (2030)
18. Buffalo - 24,500 > 45,000 (2030)
19. Pittsburgh - 24,200 > 73,000 (2030)
20. New Orleans - 19,700 > 25,000 (2030)

[Jonboy1983]

Originally Posted by Nexis4Jersey

My 2030 Projections based on future development around lines and extensions...

1. Boston - 233,300 > 290,000 (2030)
2. San Francisco - 162,400 > 215,000 (2030)
3. Los Angeles - 154,500 > 630,000 (2030)
4. Portland - 126,500 > 175,000 (2030)
5. Philadelphia - 110,100 > 190,000 (2030)
6. San Diego - 103,400 (150,000 (2030)
7. Dallas - 83,400 > 110,000 (2030)
8. Denver - 66,800 > 132,000 (2030)
9. Newark - 65,000 * > 205,000 (2030)
10. Salt Lake City - 59,100 > 102,000 (2030)
11. St. Louis - 52,300 > 147,000 (2030)
12. Phoenix - 41,300 > 115,000 (2030)
13. Houston - 36,100 > 147,000 (2030)
14. San Jose - 32,900 > 72,000 (2030)
15. Minneapolis - 30,300 > 139,000 (2030)
16. Seattle - 27,800 > 163,000 (2030)
17. Baltimore - 27,200 > 87,000 (2030)
18. Buffalo - 24,500 > 45,000 (2030)
19. Pittsburgh - 24,200 > 125,000 (2030)
20. New Orleans - 19,700 > 25,000 (2030)

I'm interested in how you'd come up with 125,000 for Pittsburgh's T by 2030. Are you anticipating an extension to the airport?

It looks like Boston not only has multiple "branches" that apparently serve very dense neighborhoods, but I'm guessing it has a series of feeder buses that hook up directly at a variety of station locations along its system...

[Nexis4Jersey]

Originally Posted by Jonboy1983

I'm interested in how you'd come up with 125,000 for Pittsburgh's T by 2030. Are you anticipating an extension to the airport?

It looks like Boston not only has multiple "branches" that apparently serve very dense neighborhoods, but I'm guessing it has a series of feeder buses that hook up directly at a variety of station locations along its system...

If the Oakland Extension goes ahead then it could boost the system up by 100,000....

[Jonboy1983]

Originally Posted by Nexis4Jersey

If the Oakland Extension goes ahead then it could boost the system up by 100,000....

Hmm. I hate to burst your bubble, but the city and Port Authority are proposing a BRT line linking Downtown and Oakland...

This kinda sucks tho...

[Nexis4Jersey]

Originally Posted by Jonboy1983

Hmm. I hate to burst your bubble, but the city and Port Authority are proposing a BRT line linking Downtown and Oakland...

This kinda sucks tho...

I thought they already had a busway?

[Cirrus]

The busway doesn't go to Oakland.

Regardless, you wouldn't get 100,000 daily riders from a light rail line to Oakland.