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RTA reporting an increase  in ridership during summer

Transit agency said ridership climbed in May, June and July.

The Greater Dayton RTA is reporting an increase in ridership during the summer months, when bus usage traditionally decreases.

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By Tristan Navera, Staff Writer 10:28 PM Sunday, August 14, 2011

More people are riding Greater Dayton Regional Transit Authority buses at a time when ridership usually drops.

RTA ridership climbed 5.6 percent in May, 4.8 percent in June and 1 percent in July compared to those months last year said Frank Ecklar, director of planning and marketing for the RTA. That translates to 81,600 more rides for those three months. Ridership overall on the RTA is up almost 2 percent this year with 87,000 more rides than this time last year he said.

“Certainly the rise in gas prices does have an effect,” Ecklar said. “It’s an economical choice to use not only because of the price of gas, but also auto insurance.”

A ride is counted as a single one-way trip to a destination no matter the number of transfers.

Typically, Dayton RTA sees a decrease in riders over the summer as students stop commuting to local schools and colleges and commuters take vacations, Ecklar said.

The increase in passengers to the RTA has been felt by businesses around the Wright Stop Plaza Transit Center.

Barbra Booker, owner of Air Wavez iWireless Cell Phones at the transit center, said more people have come through the store lately.

“A lot of people come through my store,” Booker said, “I’ve literally had people come through and say, ‘Well, when gas prices go back down maybe I can afford to drive my car.’ ”

Other businesses, such as CJ’s Burgers and Smoothies, also near the center, said the business from RTA riders is increasing.

“The last month (business) has been pretty steady,” owner Chanda San said in July.

Officials from the Federal Transit Administration noted sharp increases in gas prices often mean people switch to mass transit. They noted the 2005 surge in gas prices pushed ridership up on U.S. mass transportation in the largest increase since World War II.

A survey from the auto club AAA found Aug. 10 the average price for regular-grade gasoline in Dayton was $3.49 a gallon, down from a May 4 high of $4.16 a gallon. A year ago, regular gas averaged $2.71 a gallon in Dayton.

While ridership is up for the summer, the public transit system has seen a decline. In the past 10 years, RTA ridership has been steadily declining from 11.5 million passengers per year to about 10 million.

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2206 or tnavera@DaytonDailyNews.com.

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