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Last month, the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) carried 18.7 million passengers, shattering the previous monthly record set in June 2005 by more than 160,000 passengers. The authority averaged 719,861 passengers each weekday in March.

WMATA officials attribute the ridership spike to the tourist season’s start and last month’s Cherry Blossom events, says WMATA spokesperson Steven Taubenkibel.

Fiscal year-to-date, the authority has carried 150.8 million passengers, a 6.4 percent increase compared with the same FY2005 period.

The authority continues to set ridership records this month. Yesterday, an immigration rally held on the National Mall helped WMATA register its second-highest daily ridership in its 30-year history. The agency posted 821,283 passenger trips, second only to June 9, 2004, when WMATA registered 850,636 trips on the day of former President Ronald Reagan’s funeral.