A tram in San Diego, California, where ridership aboard public transport has recently grown. Pexels
In U.S. cities, ridership on public transit is growing as the Iran War keeps gasoline prices high.
Weekday commutes aboard the Los Angeles public transit system have grown by 8 percent since January, Bloomberg reports. In the Bay Area, weekday ridership aboard the regional train system has risen by nearly 11 percent. Chicago has also seen transit ridership grow by 11 percent this year, while in Boston, usage of the local rail system has jumped by 13 percent.
It is not clear how much of the surge in ridership is due to high gas prices. But a recent report from the New York Federal Reserve found that many Americans are managing to consume less gas “potentially by carpooling or substituting to public transit where available.”
Research from the University of Maryland has found that for every 10 percent increase in gas prices over the course of a year, demand for public transit grows by 1.2 percent. “The cost pressure accumulates over time,” lead author Hiroyuki Iseki, of the University of Maryland, told Bloomberg.
To cope with high oil prices, countries around the world — from Chile to Egypt to Pakistan to Singapore — are encouraging the use of public transport, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA). Some are even offering free or heavily reduced fares. Sweden has cut the price of a monthly transport pass in half, while the Philippines has made bus rides free for students and workers in some cities.
The IEA recently put forward a detailed roadmap for how to navigate the global energy crisis. It found that by encouraging commuters to switch from private vehicles to public transport, countries could curb the amount of oil used for car travel by up to 3 percent.
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