urbanMSP

Looks like the expansion is complete at Apple Valley Transit Station. The project added 350 more parking spaces to the existing 768-space ramp.

https://www.mvta.com/news/all-levels-no ... tion-ramp/

I suppose the worst element of this project is that there are about that many spaces at the old park and ride across the street. They also used a vacant lot nearby as spare capacity during the project. I hope that these parcels can at least be sold off and developed into housing.

Metro Transit released their 2019 ridership numbers. As expected, the overall number is down. As you can see on the month-by-month graph below, winter weather has a lot to do with it. January was especially rough, as major storms and cold led to a number of school cancellations and canceled trips. That's one reason why I would've expected a rebound in ridership this year, but concerns about the novel coronavirus might spoil that by keeping people off transit for an extended period, so we'll have to see.



Aside from the weather, the ridership trends mirror what we've seen for the past couple of years. Local bus ridership has continued to fall, as VC-subsidized ride sharing and cheap gas continue to out-compete it. However, the agency's investments in new and improved service pay off immediately and show year-over-year growth. The Green Line increased ridership by 3%, the Blue Line held steady, and the A and C Lines improved as well.



Looking ahead to 2020, it seems likely we'll see another decline, without new service being added. The novel coronavirus and an oil price war may also help depress ridership. On the flip side, any kind of crisis in auto loan defaults, a recession, or a meltdown in any of the big TNC companies could bring it back up. These seem like pretty uncertain times. There are no new METRO services scheduled to open in 2020, but the Orange Line will open in 2021, and the D, B, and E rapid bus lines and Southwest LRT should follow in the three years after that. There's hope that this ridership slide may turn around with all of this improved service coming on line.

I prefer our transit ridership increased from improved service instead of a recession or any kind of meltdown.

I prefer our transit ridership increased from improved service instead of a recession or any kind of meltdown.

Well, it would probably be a good thing if Uber and Lyft ran out of money to stop subsidizing a big VMT explosion, but obviously a sustained downturn in the economy or a crisis of auto loans would not be good.

NYTimes wrote about the national decline in bus ridership:

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/202 ... iders.html

Analysis shows the decline is largely coming from upper middle class whites. Ride shares seem to be the largest factor, though bike shares and bike riding in general are as well. The analysis suggests that as gentrification continues, bus ridership will continue to decline, and that as poorer residents move to the suburbs, bus infrastructure will be unable to follow them.

We'll see how that holds up when the rideshare companies have to stop bleeding money.

I have read accounts of ride booking drivers truly suffering a collapse in income with the work from home waves happening. I wonder how Covid-19 shakes the companies by the end of this.

Don’t see them worthy of a bailout but I expect they’ll try.

That is quite unfortunate. I am aware of some service cuts at GO Transit in Toronto and at WMATA in Washington. Both seem like they were preserving span and cutting back on frequency.

MT has some more details:

https://www.metrotransit.org/metro-tran ... ht-service
https://www.metrotransit.org/metro-tran ... oronavirus

MVTA is closing the Red Line stops at 140th and 147th. They are also closing the indoor areas of Apple Valley, Burnsville, and Cedar Grove Transit Stations. Marshall Road Transit Station closed last week.

https://www.mvta.com/route-alerts/publi ... -stations/

Ah, yes, a light rail on rubber tires.

Further service reductions on SW Transit starting Mon 4/6/20; going to a 30 minute peak schedule with a more limited span of service:
https://swtransit.org/route-alerts/redu ... -4-6-2020/

SW Prime service going to essential rides only (work, groceries) on Fri 4/3/20; fares will be free.
https://swtransit.org/sw-prime/

MVTA has shut all remaining facilities. To my knowledge this means the indoor areas of the Eagan Transit Station, Rosemount Park & Ride, 157th St Station, and Heart of the City Park & Ride.
https://www.mvta.com/route-alerts/trans ... er-notice/

A small bit of silver lining.
https://www.masstransitmag.com/manageme ... ta-transit

Metro Transit extending light rail shutdown to be from 9pm to 6am, with exception of the airport shuttle, starting April 18th. Bus routes will still follow the 11pm to 4:30am shutdown.

https://www.metrotransit.org/light-rail ... ht-service

Came across this page for potential transit improvements at Chicago and Lake with the B and D lines.

https://www.metrotransit.org/chicago-lake-hub

What are you working from home folks doing with transit passes? I’m debating finally canceling mine. It is only an option to start or stop about a month in advance. I have until May 10 to cancel for June. But then when I want to restart, I’d have to re-enroll by the 10th the month preceding. Will transit be back by fall?

There is a small part of me that sees this as supporting transit for a measly $55-60 a month. I imagine that services will not just automatically reset to where we were in February when this is all over.

I was planning on looking at it as a donation to support Metro Transit, but my employer waived the cost of the pass for the duration of WFH. Apparently it's still active if I need to use it, so I'm not sure if they're paying Metro Transit just their portion of the cost, their portion and mine, or if they worked something out to not pay at all, but the passes stay active until people start using them again. I suspect the latter.

Metro Transit has a survey about returning service to normal levels.

We would like to hear from you!
We are always striving to serve you better.

Please share your opinions in a survey to help us serve you better when service beyond essential trips is returned. In exchange for your time, all respondents will receive a $5 Starbucks gift card.

https://metrotransit.cmail19.com/t/r-l- ... wckhtrr-y/

I don't really ride transit, use it as backup for my bicycle. I have been commuting with a less than reliable bicycle and am honestly more likely to call my wife then grab the Green line or etc. Also in the Northside the reduced service has left major crowds at the stops. Especially for the C Line with people spread out and almost forced into the street in some areas.

all respondents will receive a $5 Starbucks gift card.

Why not receive a free all-day (or all-weekend) transit pass?