Chicago Transit Ridership Continues to Grow

May 2024 showed the highest post-pandemic transit ridership for Chicago’s regional transit systems, according to an article in Mass Transit. “The three operators provided more than 32 million rides in May, bringing the system to 64 percent recovery compared to 2019 levels. RTA of Northern Illinois says that since January, more than 144 million rides have been taken, an increase of 18 million rides compared to 2023.”

The article notes that “The figures represent a nearly 14 percent year-over-year growth for all fixed routes on the three service boards combined,” referring to services operated by the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA), Metra, and Pace Suburban Bus. CTA’s bus ridership recovery is at 77 percent of 2019 levels, while rail recovery stood at 59 percent in May. Metra ridership recovered to 58 percent of 2019 levels, while Pace ridership grew to 62 percent, in part due to the rapid transit Pulse lines.

The CTA recently announced the first five streets it will study for its Better Streets for Buses plan, which aims to develop ideas for improving bus travel on key corridors.