Waterloo Region Transit Ridership Hits Record High in First Week of September
Waterloo Region says Grand River Transit broke its previous ridership record during the first week of September.
A total of 150,000 people boarded ION buses and trains each weekday, 40,000 more than the previous spring record.
Every time a pa*senger boards a GRT bus or ION train, it is counted as boarding. Depending on the region, 130,000 people took the bus, while another 20,000 took the LRT train.
“More and more people are choosing to use public transportation as an affordable and sustainable means of transportation,” the councilor said. Colleen James, who chairs the region’s planning and works committee.
“Not only has our ridership recovered post-pandemic, it continues to grow, demonstrating how much our community values and relies on the service.
The region says transit ridership is typically at its highest during the first two weeks of September, when students return to school.
“We expect ridership to continue to be significantly higher than last fall,” said Doug Spooner, director of transit services.
The region says there have been crowds on some bus routes and says it is monitoring the situation.
“Our operators and staff do an incredible job managing crowded buses, customer requests and fare product purchases,” Spooner explained.
“We know there have been crowds on some buses, due to the increasing number of people using public transport. We continue to monitor routes and travel for overcrowding and ensure all of our available buses are continually on the road.
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