Half of transit trips in America are made on buses.
But over the past several years, nearly every major US city has witnessed dramatic declines in bus ridership.
Some blame may go to low gas prices and new services like Uber. But transit advocates think bus service is declining because of longstanding policy neglect, and that something can and ought to be done about it. They’re pushing elected officials and transit agencies to apply changes like bus lanes, all-door boarding and traffic signal priority.
These kinds of policy changes require political attention and will, which will only be obtained through a groundswell of public support. To give voice to bus riders, a new generation of bus campaigners are now canvassing buses, bus stops and transit hubs to hear from and organize riders.
Buses are a relatively inexpensive and flexible form of transit that American cities could be making much better use of. Thanks to new advocacy campaigns, we think we’ll see buses turning around.
On the Brink: Will WMATA’s Progress Be Erased by 2024?
The experience of being a WMATA rider has substantially improved over the last 18 months, thanks to changes the agency has made like adding off-peak service and simplifying fares. Things are about to get even better with the launch of all-door boarding later this fall, overnight bus service on some lines starting in December, and an ambitious plan to redesign the Metrobus network. But all of this could go away by July 1, 2024.
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A Bus Agenda for New York City Mayor Eric Adams
To create the “state-of-the-art bus transit system” of his campaign platform, Mayor Adams will have to both expand the quantity and improve the quality of bus lanes. We recommend these strategies to get it done.
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