Performance

Metro Transit Ridership

Data updated June 1 with ridership through April

2019202020212022202320240.050,000100,000150,000200,000250,000Total Ridership​Average Weekday from Jan 02, 2019 to present​WEEKDAY RIDES

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Skip to annual system ridership from 2012-2023

What is the measure?

Ridership on individual trips is measured in multiple ways: fares paid at the farebox, taps of Go-To Cards to readers on board or at stations, and automatic passenger counters on METRO lines. These trip data are aggregated to route, mode, and system level, and reported regularly to the Federal Transit Administration’s National Transit Database.

Here we share one way of counting rides: average weekday ridership. This is the average number of boardings by day, in which weekday (not holiday or reduced) Metro Transit service* was operated, for a given month.

What does this measure tell us?

In general, a boarding is a successful meeting of supply of Metro Transit service with demand for people to make a trip. Ridership can be affected by the amount of service Metro Transit provides, but also the demand that exists for taking trips in general, and for using transit in particular for those trips. During the COVID-19 pandemic, beginning in March 2020, Metro Transit service was reduced slightly, but general travel demand plummeted. Ridership declined significantly as a result, but some modes and routes, notably arterial BRT lines, were more resilient because travel demand remained more constant.

The metric of average weekday trips tells us about the use of Metro Transit services during the busy times of regular travel, whether to and from work or school, or for trips like grocery shopping, medical appointments, and other everyday errands. The different scales of ridership by mode or line can help us understand how many people are using different parts of the system. Perhaps most important, the trend in the average over time can tell us about how regular travel is increasing or decreasing.

20192020202120222023202440,00060,00080,000100,000120,000140,000160,000180,000Regular Bus Ridership​Average Weekday from Jan 02, 2019 to present​WEEKDAY RIDES

2019202020212022202320245,00010,00015,00020,00025,00030,00035,000Blue Line Ridership​Average Weekday from Jan 02, 2019 to present​WEEKDAY RIDES

2019202020212022202320245,00010,00015,00020,00025,00030,00035,00040,00045,00050,000Green Line Ridership​Average Weekday from Jan 02, 2019 to present​WEEKDAY RIDES

2019202020212022202320246008001,0001,2001,4001,600Orange Line Ridership​Average Weekday from Dec 06, 2021 to present​WEEKDAY RIDES Orange Line service began in December2021.

2019202020212022202320241,5002,0002,5003,0003,5004,0004,5005,0005,5006,000A Line Ridership​Average Weekday from Jan 02, 2019 to present​WEEKDAY RIDES

2019202020212022202320243,0003,5004,0004,5005,0005,5006,0006,5007,0007,500C Line Ridership​Average Weekday from Jun 10, 2019 to present​WEEKDAY RIDES

2019202020212022202320247,0008,0009,00010,00011,00012,00013,000D Line Ridership​Average Weekday from Dec 05, 2022 to present​WEEKDAY RIDES

2019202020212022202320240.05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,000Northstar Ridership​Average Weekday from Jan 02, 2019 to present​WEEKDAY RIDES

* Includes ridership on routes planned and operated or contracted by Metro Transit, as well as Maple Grove Transit routes operated by Metro Transit. Metro Transit ridership does not include rides from other regional providers (U of M, MVTA, SouthWest Transit, Plymouth Metrolink).

Graph showing Metro Transit annual ridership from 2012-2023

Safety & security

Data updated April 10 with crime data through March

Total crime

From Quarter 1, 2023 to present

Q1 2023Q2 2023Q3 2023Q4 2023Q1 202405001000150020002500Total Number of Crimes2,4172,0601,6011,8312,235

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What is the measure?

Total crimes is a measure of how many crimes were recorded by the Metro Transit Police Department, which responds to and investigates all crimes that occur on transit property or on transit vehicles. Reported crimes may lead to an arrest or arrests, which are counted separately.

Calls for service

From Quarter 1, 2023 to present

10,31810,409 8,288 9,047 9,11811,24012,33913,10612,27710,499Q1 2023Q2 2023Q3 2023Q4 2023Q1 202402,0004,0006,0008,00010,00012,000Initiated ByDispatchedOfficer-InitiatedCalls for Service

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What is the measure?

Dispatched calls for service reflect the number of times someone contacts police seeking response. Officer-initiated calls for service reflect the number of times an officer addresses a concern or crime in progress without being called on to respond. Officer-initiated calls for service are one way of measuring how proactive police officers are on transit.

SUMMARY STATISTICS for crime and calls for service

How is the data tracked?

The National Incident Based Reporting System (NIBRS) is used by law enforcement agencies across the U.S. to collect crime and incident data. The Metro Transit Police Department (MTPD), along with all Minnesota law enforcement agencies, submit data to the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) in a proscribed format that is consistent, reliable, and incorporates checks and balances to ensure accuracy. The BCA then provides the data to the FBI, who compile and publish the Uniform Crime Report (UCR) for nationwide comparison.

Metro Transit serves eight counties and numerous cities, all of whom have their own law enforcement agencies. As such, MTPD is considered the secondary police agency in these communities; therefore, state statue provides first right of refusal to the city or county police department, even if the crime occurred on Metro Transit property. In these situations, MTPD may assist on the investigation, but the crime data is only reported by the main investigative agency to avoid duplication.