METRO Magazine Logo
MenuMENU
SearchSEARCH

LA Metro Shows Continued Ridership Growth in January

Metro’s average weekday boardings reached 80.7% of 2019 pre-pandemic levels and on the weekends, ridership attained 93.1% of its pre-pandemic level.

February 28, 2025
LA Metro bus

Weekends saw an average of 502,735 trips on Saturdays, and an average of 395,323 trips on Sundays. 

Photo: LA Metro

2 min to read


 

L.A. Metro celebrated its 26th consecutive month of year-over-year ridership growth in January with 25,358,363 boardings. The combined bus and rail ridership reached 82.9% of its 2019 pre-pandemic ridership level. 

Metro’s average weekday boardings reached 80.7% of 2019 pre-pandemic levels and on the weekends, ridership attained 93.1% of its pre-pandemic level.

Ad Loading...

Bus Ridership Increasing

The Metro bus system saw 20,041,153 trips taken in January, marking a 5.6% ridership increase compared to January 2024. Weekday bus ridership saw an average of 729,709 daily boardings, marking a 5.6% year-over-year increase. 

Weekends saw an average of 502,735 trips on Saturdays, and an average of 395,323 trips on Sundays. Saturday bus ridership in January marked an 8.0% increase and Sunday bus ridership increased 3.3% year-over-year. Both average Saturday and Sunday ridership exceeded pre-pandemic ridership for January 2019, up 2.2% and 1.5% respectively.

Ridership on the Bus Rapid Transit J Line, which runs on dedicated bus lanes on the 10 and 110 freeways from El Monte to San Pedro, rose 6.2% compared to January 2024.

Rail Ridership Up as Well

In January, Metro rail boardings grew 2.9% over January 2024 to 5,317,210. Weekday rail boardings grew by 2.7% year-over-year. Saturday and Sunday rail ridership in January 2025 grew 6.2% and 1.4% respectively year-over-year.

The E Line ridership grew 16.8%, led by Saturday and Sunday boardings, which were up 25.8% and 16.4% higher, respectively, in January 2025 compared to January 2024. Weekdays in January were up 15.7% year over year.

Ad Loading...

Wildfire Impact

The devastating wildfires in Los Angeles County in January caused several Metro bus lines to be cancelled or rerouted. 

Metro Bus Line 134 was cancelled for more than a month and has been partially restored following the Palisades Fire and subsequent mudslides. Line 602 is now running a modified route after having been cancelled for a number of weeks. In Altadena, Lines 660 and 662 are running modified routes due to the Eaton Fire. 

This month, in response to the LA Wildfires, the Metro board approved extending Metro’s LIFE program, which provides free rides and reduced fares to low-income customers, to those affected by the wildfires. The LIFE team was present at numerous Wildfire Relief events where they were able to assist 2,089 new riders with transit relief.

More Management

Railby StaffFebruary 2, 2026

Chicago Region Transit Ridership Grows in 2025

The region’s fixed-route system finished out the year with a total of 373.5 million rides. Adding 12.3 million rides over 2024 represents an increase that is equal to the annual transit ridership of Kansas City.

Read More →
New Mobilityby StaffJanuary 30, 2026

Chicago's Pace Expands VanGo Mobility Program

The service is a flexible, reservation-based transit service designed to close the first- and last-mile gaps and connect riders to employment for just $5 per day.

Read More →
A blue and white graphic with text reading "Foothill Gold Line: Design Contract Award & 2026 Board Leadership."
Managementby StaffJanuary 30, 2026

Foothill Gold Line Board Awards Claremont Extension Design Contract to Parsons, Maintains Board Leadership for 2026

Parsons wins the $60M Claremont Extension design contract as the Foothill Gold Line board reaffirms leadership during a pivotal project phase.

Read More →
Ad Loading...
Technologyby StaffJanuary 29, 2026

Houston METRO Introduces RideMETRO Fare System

The upgraded system, which went live earlier this month, supports METRO’s METRONow vision to enhance the customer experience, improve service reliability, and strengthen long-term regional mobility.

Read More →
Managementby StaffJanuary 29, 2026

Valley Metro Sees Strong Ridership Growth in 2025

The agency ranked top five among mid-sized U.S. transit systems, defined as agencies with 15 million to 50 million annual trips.

Read More →
A b2x rewards logo and graphic reading "Read. Learn. Earn."
Managementby StaffJanuary 29, 2026

Bobit Business Media Launches B2X Rewards to Engage Transit Industry Professionals

The new program rewards B2B audience readers for engaging with trusted content and suppliers, earning them points toward events, travel, and more.

Read More →
Ad Loading...
Busby StaffJanuary 29, 2026

Subway Customer Satisfaction Reaches Record High, New York MTA Says

The subway system saw increases across all key metrics, with 62% of subway riders reporting they feel satisfied with the system overall.

Read More →
Busby StaffJanuary 28, 2026

New Orleans RTA Reaches Agreement with ATU

The agreement provides competitive wages and reflects strong labor-management collaboration, positive working relationships, and a shared commitment to building a world-class transit system for the community, said RTA CEO Lona Edwards Hankins.

Read More →
Managementby StaffJanuary 27, 2026

Keolis Retains Virginia Railway Express Contract

The new contract for Keolis and VRE will commence in July 2026, with the potential to expand to 15 years.

Read More →
Ad Loading...
Busby StaffJanuary 27, 2026

California's OCTA Advances 2026 Initiatives Centered on Balance and Sustainability

The priorities are outlined in the 2026 Board and CEO Initiatives and Action Plan, which serves as a roadmap to guide the agency’s work throughout the year and ensure continued progress and accountability on voter-approved transportation investments and essential mobility services.

Read More →