APTA study shows growing need for late-shift transit service

While some public transit agencies around the country operate late-shift services between 4 p.m. and 6 p.m., additional services are “vitally needed” for a large share of riders who work nights and weekends, according to an American Public Transportation Association (APTA) study. 

Late-shift workers in metropolitan areas are 40 percent less likely to commute via public transit because of inadequate service. Many commuters are much more likely to drive themselves or use transportation network company services such as Uber and Lyft, APTA officials said in a press release. 

Late-shift transit commuters who work in industries like food service, health care, construction, education and finance, earn an estimated $28 billion in wages and generate $84 billion in sales each year, according to the study.

Increased late-night transit access would result in access to opportunities for late-shift employees and increase the pool of workers for employers, APTA officials concluded. 

The study recommends transit agencies improve options for late-shift workers by: 

• increasing operating hours to make services convenient and flexible;
• establishing programs dedicated to funding late-shift transit operations;
• increasing investment in state-of-good-repair programs and shrinking backlogs of deferred maintenance;
• embracing partnerships to meet late-shift mobility needs; and 
• formalizing frameworks to allow employers that benefit most to subsidize late-shift transportation.