Caltrain has been recognized by the American Public Transportation Association’s (APTA’s) Transit Wrapped 2025 list as the fastest-growing U.S. transit agency over the last year.

The increased ridership and satisfaction levels follow the launch of its new high-performance electric trains in September 2024, which, according to a release, offer a “better experience for Caltrain riders and provide faster, more frequent service.”

The agency’s spotlight on increased ridership follows Caltrain’s 2025 Customer Satisfaction Survey, unveiled in October, which showed ridership had grown 57% year-over-year, with weekend ridership doubling and five consecutive months of over one million riders.

Alongside the growth in ridership, the rail agency has seen a dramatic increase in ridership satisfaction and the best ratings in the 27-year history of the survey. Surveyed riders reported a record high satisfaction rating of 4.41 out of 5, up from 4.02 in 2024.

While Caltrain continues its strong ridership growth, transit agencies across the Bay Area are confronting structural budget shortfalls as work-from-home patterns continue to reshape commuting behavior.

Caltrain has responded on three fronts:

• Cutting costs

• Monetizing resources

• Adapting service to attract more riders

The preliminary FY25 budget end results show positive impacts from cost efficiencies and higher revenue than budgeted.

New Funding Measure Offers Lifeline

In November, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed SB63, which authorizes a regional revenue measure for the November 2026 ballot. If this measure reaches the ballot and passes, it would establish a stable funding source for Caltrain and other Bay Area transit systems to help maintain reliable, accessible service.

If no external funding materializes, through a regional measure or otherwise, Caltrain would be forced to take actions to reduce the structural funding gap. These measures would not be undertaken lightly but would be unavoidable in the absence of new revenue, jeopardizing the progress Caltrain has made in bolstering ridership and satisfaction levels.

“Caltrain is dedicated to delivering safe, reliable, and quality service to its riders, and the increased ridership and satisfaction levels reflect our agency’s commitment to doing just that,” said Caltrain Executive Director Michelle Bouchard. “Electrified service and other service enhancements have proven that residents across the Bay Area value these improvements.”

The new high-performance electric trains have delivered faster service to destinations, a modern fleet that’s quieter and more comfortable, and new amenities such as customer-facing Wi-Fi and accessible outlets.