Transit ridership growing rapidly
September 23, 2006

Statistics Canada is reporting more substantial increases in transit use across the country. Their latest bulletin issued yesterday says passenger volume increased by 2.7% in July over the levels in the previous July.

Volumes have been up in each of the first seven months of 2007 by amounts significantly greater than the changes reported in the same months a year earlier. While passenger numbers rose 1.5% overall last year, the increases in every month this year have exceeded that rate and are averaging over 3%. The lowest change was recorded in February at 1.8% and the highest in May when passenger numbers rose by 5% over the previous May.

At that point in the year, HSR ridership was up about one percent. The lower than average increase was attributed to fewer improvements in service in Hamilton than have been taking place in many large transit systems.

The Statistics Canada calculations are based on passenger levels in ten urban bus systems that together represent approximately eighty percent of transit revenues in Canada. The survey doesn't identify which systems are included, but Hamilton is Canada's ninth largest city.

In its May budget the federal Conservative government introduced a tax credit for purchasers of monthly transit passes, but a positive effect is not apparent from the latest statistics. The monthly increase in June and July – both at 2.7 percent – were lower than the average of the five previous months.