Monthly Passenger Bus and Urban Transit, January 2020
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Released: 2020-04-06
Total operating revenues (excluding subsidies) for urban transit companies were $358.4 million in January, up 4.0% from January 2019.
Over the same period, ridership increased 3.5% to 164.6 million passenger trips.
Possible impacts of COVID-19 on public transit ridership
Statistics Canada remains committed to providing an accurate picture of the social and economic impacts of the novel coronavirus (also known as COVID-19). On January 25, the National Microbiology Lab in Winnipeg confirmed that a man in quarantine in Toronto's Sunnybrook Hospital was Canada's first documented case of the new coronavirus. Even if some public transit users immediately began to alter their commute, it would have been too late in the month for these changes to have a discernible impact on January's transit ridership. However, it is likely that the February data will show some decrease in ridership, and the March data will show a sharp decline. For example, Toronto and Montréal transit agencies have already reported ridership declines in excess of 70% by the middle of March.
Note to readers
Data for the most recent quarter are subject to revision. The data in this release are not seasonally adjusted.
This survey collects operating revenue (excluding subsidies) and the number of passenger trips from a panel of urban transit companies that represent at least 75% of revenues in each province/territory. Users should note that the panels are adjusted annually to maintain the 75% coverage and could be slightly different from what they were in the same month a year earlier.
Caution should also be used when comparing values prior to January 2017 as the number of sampled companies was changed significantly. Data prior to January 2017 can be found in table 23-10-0078-01.
The Transportation Data and Information Hub, a joint initiative between Statistics Canada and Transport Canada, provides Canadians with online access to comprehensive statistics and measures on the country's transportation sector.
Contact information
For more information, or to enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact us (toll-free 1-800-263-1136; 514-283-8300; STATCAN.infostats-infostats.STATCAN@canada.ca) or Media Relations (613-951-4636; STATCAN.mediahotline-ligneinfomedias.STATCAN@canada.ca).
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