Comparing Transit Systems and Populations for 13 Worldwide Cities

Andrew Small shares news of a new study from the Institute for Transportation & Policy that "measures how many people live within walking distance (1 km) of high-quality rapid transit, either light rail or bus transit, in 26 cities and metros around the world."

Using bus rapid transit standards of transit service, the study then compared the transit systems of 13 metropolitan areas to the population densities of those same areas. "The top four cities with the largest populations near rapid transit were Paris, Barcelona, Madrid, and London, reaching more than 90 percent of their city populations," according to Small.

One key point to be made, however, is the difference between transit coverage in the core areas of these cities compared to the reaches of their suburban periphery. "For example, 100 percent of population of the city of Paris has access to rapid transit, but only 50 percent of its larger metro population has access to the rapid transit shed that extends beyond city boundaries."

Of the cities examined in the study, U.S. cities performed well below average. "The six U.S. cities included in the study averaged a score of 17.2 percent on their metro-area service reach," according to Small, with New York City leading the way with transit accessible to 77 percent of residents living in the city and 35 percent of residents living in the metropolitan area.