Canadian public transit ridership remains strong

Public transit ridership in Canada remained strong in 2001 despite lengthy strikes in Calgary and Vancouver, according to figures released today by the Canadian Urban Transit Association (CUTA). In total, 1.47 billion trips were taken on Canadian transit systems in 2001, representing a 0.9% decrease from 2000. CUTA's preliminary data indicate that per-capita ridership increased from 83.5 rides per capita in 2000 to 83.9 rides per capita in 2001. "Removing the effects of the two major strikes, ridership increased 2.6% on the other transit systems in 2001, continuing an impressive five-year growth record," said Michael Roschlau, CUTA president and CEO. Canada's two largest provinces, Ontario and Quebec, both set 10-year transit ridership records, with Ontario reaching about 680 million trips and Quebec approximately 475 million trips last year. Vancouver and Calgary aside, ridership increased more rapidly than population in 2001.