This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
3/3/2023
Metro Transit in Minneapolis recorded more than 42 million rides across all rail, bus and paratransit services in 2022, up 17% compared with total ridership in 2021.
Light-rail ridership increased 16% year over year with more than 12 million rides, Metropolitan Council officials said in a press release. The council oversees Metro Transit.
The transit agency is studying changing travel trends and commuting patterns that have occurred since the pandemic began, council officials said. Metro Transit noted that ridership is lower on Mondays and Fridays due to those being popular for remote-work days, and morning and afternoon commute peak periods are no longer equal. Now, 3 p.m. is the busiest time of day for transit.
"We are advancing a vision that’s greater than simply returning to where we were before the pandemic," said Metro Transit Interim General Manager Lesley Kandaras. "This is about moving forward to understand and meet the evolving needs of our customers and the communities we serve."
Metro Transit also will continue to hire train and bus operators to return service that was reduced during the pandem. The agency was about 200 operators short of its budgeted total at the beginning of 2023, Metro Transit officials said. The recruitment process has led to higher starting wages, paid training and external train operator applications.