TriMet ridership dipped in FY2013

The Tri-County Metropolitan Transportation District of Oregon's (TriMet) annual ridership declined 3 percent in fiscal-year 2013, which ended June 30.

The agency provided about 99 million rides, about 3 million less than in FY2012. WES Commuter Rail posted a 5.5 percent ridership increase and bus ridership remained constant, but MAX light-rail service trips declined 7.4 percent year over year, TriMet officials said in a press release.

Agency officials attributed the ridership decline to the end of the Free Rail Zone, the introduction of a new fare structure, an increase in fare enforcement efforts and steadying gasoline prices compared with the gas-price spike in FY2012.

Despite the lower total, FY2013's ridership nearly matched agency projections, TriMet officials said.