A $186 million infusion of federal stimulus money to the Metropolitan Council should help Metro Transit get through a challenging year after the COVID-19 pandemic devastated ridership on the region's buses and trains.
"It is great news for us," said Charlie Zelle, chairman of the Met Council, which operates Metro Transit.
The most recent funding lifeline, part of the national $900 billion pandemic stimulus package hashed out by Congress last month, will likely mean millions for Metro Transit — though the Met Council hasn't yet determined how much.
Once COVID-19 hit last spring, ridership on trains and buses plunged as many passengers opted to work from home and the pandemic's economic fallout hit. Ridership overall is down about 60% since then, but the decline varies depending on the mode of transit.
Commuter bus routes from the suburbs and the Northstar commuter rail, which connects downtown Minneapolis and Big Lake, have seen ridership fall 95%. But core local bus routes and popular rapid bus service, including the A and C lines, have seen a decline of 40% to 50% — more of a slow bleed than a hemorrhage.
The pandemic-related ridership decline also has punched a giant hole in the amount of revenue Metro Transit collects in fares. In 2019, $99 million was collected from passengers, a figure expected to be about 58% lower for 2020.
In response to the decline in ridership, Metro Transit cut about 20% of its service routes, though it was able to avoid layoffs, said General Manager Wes Kooistra. The decline, he said, "reflects the change in work habits through the pandemic."
While 51% of Americans surveyed by Gallup last April said they were "always" working remotely at the height of restrictions on businesses and schools, that number declined to 33% by last fall. Gallup, the national polling firm, surveyed some 2,750 people for its study.
