Most Commuter Rail Systems Are Still Struggling Post-Pandemic

Commuter rail systems are still recovering from historic ridership dips seen during COVID-19. Although many workers are returning to their offices, rail demand still hasn’t bounced back to pre-pandemic levels and travel patterns may be shifting.

Today’s WatchBlog post looks at our new report on trends in commuter rail use and the steps rail systems are taking to bring back riders.

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Ridership is down. Operating costs are up.

Across the country, commuter rail has been a reliable alternative to driving between suburban communities and city centers.

Commuter rail schedules have historically been tailored to getting riders to and from work in the city and largely followed a Monday through Friday, 9-to-5 pattern. But the pandemic affected how people use and prioritize public transit for daily activities. For example, changes in telework patterns greatly affected the demand for transit—essentially shifting demand away from the peak hours and days when workers traditionally commuted into the city.

But it wasn’t just commuter rail that was hit hard by such changes. All transit systems (subways, buses, and light rail) were severely impacted. Stay-at-home orders early in the pandemic led to an 81% drop in riders for all transit.

We took a closer look at how changes affected the 31 commuter rail systems operating across the country. While most systems in 2024 were providing service near or above pre-pandemic levels, ridership on all but 6 systems remained below pre-pandemic levels.

Map of the 31 Commuter Rail Systems in the U.S.

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Lower ridership = revenue shortfalls

As a result, fare revenue was down 31% overall in fiscal year 2023 (compared to fiscal year 2019) for commuter rail systems.

To offset their losses, many commuter rail systems turned to federal and local funding to help cover operating costs. Three pandemic relief laws provided more than $69 billion to the transit industry to cover a wide range of expenses—from payroll to day-to-day operations. But representatives from many commuter rail systems told us this money has largely run out—even though ridership is still lagging.

Meanwhile, most systems have reported increased operating costs post-pandemic. Across all rail systems, there was a 28% increase in operating costs, which added to financial strains. Inflation contributed substantially to the increase in costs. Beyond that, commuter rail system officials said that labor and material costs were also factors.

They also noted that higher costs have affected systems’ ability to plan and implement projects needed for future operations. For example, one commuter rail system had to postpone infrastructure improvements to its older system.

Should costs continue to increase while ridership recovery remains uncertain, many commuter rail system officials said they will likely face financial challenges that could result in reduced operations.

What are commuter rail systems doing to regain ridership and revenues?

Some commuter rail systems are trying to adapt to better meet changing passenger needs. For example, some are:

• Expanding service hours beyond traditional commuting hours
   
• Offering free fares and flexible passes for certain passengers, such as “youth passes”
   
• Adding new stations and shuttle bus service to help passengers reach popular destinations beyond the rail line, such as nearby sports arenas or airports
   
• Using feedback to strategically expand and adapt service based on community needs

They are also adapting to funding shortfalls. As they run out of remaining COVID-19 relief funding, many commuter rail systems are also looking toward other sources to offset a loss in fare revenues. Officials from most of the systems we interviewed said that they plan to seek new funding from sources outside of the federal government in the future. Some said they are considering raising fares to help fill the resulting budget shortfall. However, raising fares could reduce ridership.

To learn more about how commuter rail systems are doing post-pandemic, check out our new report. And for an in-depth look at each of the 31 commuter rail systems, look for our “snapshots” at the end of the report.

• GAO’s fact-based, nonpartisan information helps Congress and federal agencies improve government. The WatchBlog lets us contextualize GAO’s work a little more for the public. Check out more of our posts at GAO.gov/blog.
   
• Got a comment, question? Email us at blog@gao.gov.