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New Video Explains UCLA Study on Transit Ridership Decline

A new video shows UCLA research on why transit has declined, and what can be done to bring it back.

By Joe Linton

10:45 AM PDT on June 7, 2018

New Video Explains UCLA Study on Transit Ridership Decline

UCLA ITS attributes transit ridership declines to increases in car ownership and use. Capture from UCLA ITS video

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The experts at UCLA’s Institute of Transportation Studies have a new video out that explains their recent study on why California and L.A. transit ridership has declined recently.

The 70-page January, 2018, study is well worth a read, but get the key points from the above video, or from Streetsblog’s explainer article.

The report and, especially its recommendations, are also summarized in a new infographic-laden document called Not Boarding – The Case of the Disappearing Transit Rider. UCLA ITS experts recommend several solutions, including:

expanding bus-only lanes
making easier integrated fare payment methods
charging variable distance-based transit fares
charging drivers closer to the real costs they incur, including congestion pricing and parking reform
using zoning to foster building more multi-modal transit-friendly places