Palm Tran boasts record-breaking ridership numbers

Palm Tran, the public transportation system serving Palm Beach County Florida experienced record-breaking ridership totals for both fixed route and paratransit operations for the first six months of Fiscal Year 2003. Palm Tran fixed routes recorded more than 3.5 million passenger boardings for the six-month period from October 2002 through March 2003, an increase of 13.27% from the same period in FY 2002. This double-digit ridership increase was accomplished with no increase in fixed route bus service level from the previous fiscal year. Perry J. Maull, executive director of Palm Tran attributes the record-breaking fixed route ridership totals to vigorous efforts to promote the use of bus passes by Palm Beach County residents eligible for transportation disadvantaged and Medicaid programs. Palm Tran's Connection paratransit service recorded 328,516 passenger boardings, or an increase of 12.25%. This boost required an increase of paratransit vans in service from an average of 145 vans per day to 155 vans per day. Ridership is now averaging over 3,000 scheduled passenger trips per day up from 1,100 scheduled passenger trips per day of just three years ago when Palm Tran assumed control of the paratransit service.