The Kansas City Area Transportation Authority (KCATA) customers logged more than 15.9 million trips last year, the third highest annual ridership in nearly two decades.
Despite gas prices that dipped below $2/gallon at the end of the year, customers continued to find value on The Metro. Riders most frequently use transit to get to work or school.
In 2014, ridership among University of Missouri-Kansas City students remained strong. Students are able to use their student ID as a pass. KCATA is replicating this success with a similar program for employees of the city of Kansas City, Mo. City employees are able to use their employee ID to ride the bus, rather than purchasing 31-day passes. This flexibility is proving attractive; more eligible employees are hopping on board since the start of the program.
“As we closed out 2014, we saw that people continue to look to public transit to provide access to jobs, school and shopping,” said Vice President of Communications Cindy Baker. “More and more riders are turning to The Metro for reliable, affordable, environmentally friendly transportation.”
People who want to join the growing ranks of Metro riders can visit www.kcata.org, or call the Regional Call Center at (816) 221-0660. The center’s hours are 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. weekdays.