Transit agencies around the U.S. offered free rides on a single day, and large crowds follow. But observers aren't sure they'll stick around when they have to pay again.
"Thursday's offer of free rides on more than 30 transit agencies in the Bay Area certainly lured thousands of new riders, likely at record levels. Transit officials were still tallying the numbers Thursday afternoon.
The key question: How many of those newbies will give transit another shot when rides are not free?
I rode trains, trolleys and buses around the bay Thursday, starting in Campbell on light rail at 8 a.m., and jumping onboard Caltrain in downtown San Jose, switching to BART in Millbrae and returning home on BART through the East Bay, then taking the bus and light rail from Fremont to Milpitas and back to Campbell by 1:33 p.m.
Ridership numbers for most agencies won't be known until today. But on Bay Area ferries, the counts were staggering: up more than 100 percent on the Golden Gate ferries, from 2,168 daily riders to 4,552 on Thursday. And on the Sausalito ferry, the daily count of 435 soared to 2,170."
FULL STORY: Roadshow: Free rides bring elbow-to-elbow crowds to Caltrain, BART, VTA
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UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Chaddick Institute at DePaul University
City of Piedmont, CA
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research