TRACKING RIDERSHIP, REVENUE, AND CARES ACT FUNDING
TRACKING RIDERSHIP, REVENUE, AND CARES ACT FUNDING
On March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a global pandemic. That week, Metrolink experienced an immediate drop in ridership and revenue as people stayed home for their safety and to stop the spread of COVID-19.
The 90% drop in revenue and ridership has had a significant impact on Metrolink as we rely on farebox revenue to cover almost 35% of our operating costs. But, our service is essential for those who need it – oftentimes, the most vulnerable in our population. We are grateful our elected officials provided much needed financial assistance to transportation agencies to continue operating. As part of Metrolink’s commitment to transparency, this webpage is available so community leaders and members can learn about the pandemic’s impact on our revenue and ridership as well as track how the CARES Act assistance is used.
How to read: Click on the tabs below to learn more about our ridership, our revenues, and the CARES Act funding that is supporting our operations.
Metrolink ridership has begun to recover, though very slowly. While most of our riders tell us that they plan to return to Metrolink, we know it will take time for us to recover the record-setting ridership we were seeing before COVID-19.
You can view the impact of COVID-19 has had on Metrolink ridership using our Interactive System Map or our Ridership Bar Graph below.
INTERACTIVE SYSTEM MAP
On the Interactive System Map below, hover over the colored lines to see the previous month’s ridership on each of our lines, as compared to the same month the previous year.
RIDERSHIP BAR GRAPH
Below you can see how ridership has changed as compared to 2019. You can also select a specific line from the controls below to see how it’s changed year over year and by month.
The decrease in the number of boardings has directly resulted in a decrease in fare revenue, which is reflected below beginning in Q4 of FY 2020. In Q4 of FY 2020, there is over a $20M decrease in revenue compared to the previous year. You can use the controls below to see the impacts on revenue by line. Metrolink is closely monitoring the impact in each subsequent quarter in FY 2021.
REVENUE IMPACTS BY LINE
Metrolink supports essential workers and others who rely on public transportation by keeping our trains running safely and reliably throughout the pandemic. Even while running a reduced schedule, our operating costs exceed our current fare box revenue as you can see below. On March 27, 2020, the CARES Act was signed into law, with overwhelming bipartisan support, to fulfill a commitment to protect the American people from economic and public health impacts of COVID-19. The CARES Act funding will cover the gap in operational expenses while our ridership and revenues recover with the rest of the economy.
CLOSING THE GAP
CARES ACT FUNDING
While Metrolink is not a direct recipient of CARES Act funding, at the end of May 2020, $227M in CARES Act funding was allocated to Metrolink via our five Member Agencies: LA METRO, OCTA, RCTC, SBCTA, and VCTC. Under the CARES Act, operating and other safety and health expenditures resulting from the pandemic, are reimbursable to Metrolink. This is critical as it will serve to increase our operating cash-flow. In the graph below, you can see the CARES Act funding that was made available to Metrolink, and how much is still available to supplement our monthly operations costs while our ridership revenues remain low. This vital funding allows us to continue providing our service to the essential workers of our community while at the same time rebuilding our ridership and revenue to pre-pandemic levels.
As a good steward of public funds and trust, Metrolink will be fully transparent to the community about these expenditures.