Charlotte Area Tops Nation in Growth of Public Transit Use in National Survey
— from Olaf Kinard
 Charlotte, NC (December 1, 2009) - Charlotte tops the nation in the growth of people using public transit between 2006 and 2008 in a recent report issued by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB). During this time area residents indicated that they switched to public transit at a growth rate of 47 percent based on data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey, a monthly randomly-sampled survey of area residents, which included questions about commuting choices.
“The public voted in 1998 and 2007 to support providing more transportation choices for the region,” said John Muth, Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS) Interim CEO. “Today more and more people choose CATS for their everyday transportation needs providing greater access and mobility in their lives.”
During this time period, ridership on CATS grew 30.5 percent with all service categories experiencing double digit growth.
- Regional Express up 72.8%
- Neighborhood Shuttles up 87.4%
- Vanpools up 30.1%
- Local bus up 12.6%
- STS up 12.2%
In the last month of 2007, CATS opened the state’s first light rail system, the LYNX Blue line, which helped fuel growth in 2008. Evidence that people have switched to public transit is a 2009 survey in which 72 percent of LYNX riders commuted by car prior to opening of the line.
There were many factors that fueled the growth in ridership on the CATS system including:
- Increased and more convenient services
- Improved on-time performance
- Enhanced customer service
- Rise in the average cost of gasoline by 22 percent
Of the top ten cities listed in the U.S. OMB report seven have implemented light rail and one has commuter rail service, many integrated with transit-oriented-development and with a dedicated funding source for public transit.
Press Release Contacts:
Olaf Kinard (704) 336-0258
Jean Leier (704) 432-0496
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