Urban public transit, June 2022
Archived Content
Information identified as archived is provided for reference, research or recordkeeping purposes. It is not subject to the Government of Canada Web Standards and has not been altered or updated since it was archived. Please "contact us" to request a format other than those available.
Released: 2022-08-18
Highlights
In June, Canada's urban transit ridership reached over 96 million passenger trips, an increase of more than 40 million from June 2021.
With COVID-19-related restrictions eased across the country, many workers returned to the workplace on a full time or hybrid basis, helping to push transit recovery to a new high—63.6% of its pre-pandemic ridership from June 2019.
Ridership recovery reaches new high
In June, there were 96.6 million passenger trips made on Canada's urban transit networks, 41.3 million more rides than in June 2021. This was the highest monthly total of passenger trips since March 2020 and the 15th consecutive month of year-over-year growth.
Nationally, transit ridership recovered almost two-thirds (63.6%) of pre-pandemic levels for the first month since the pandemic began, with more workers returning, full time or hybrid, to the workplace. As pandemic restrictions were lifted, on-site work coupled with high gas prices had more Canadians opting for public transit.
Despite this increase, passenger volumes continued to lag pre-pandemic levels, with about 55.2 million fewer riders in June 2022 compared with the same month in 2019.
On a monthly basis, as the school year ends and summer vacations start, urban transit typically shows a seasonal dip in ridership of roughly 3.0% from May to June, pre-pandemic. This June (+0.3%), ridership did not wane with the return of many commuters to the physical workplace.
Indeed, according to the June Labour Force Survey, the proportion of workers who usually work all of their hours at home fell to 17.9%, while the proportion of workers with a hybrid work arrangement (working some hours at home and some at another location) continued to edge up. A strong summer-job market for students is also helping to bolster ridership.
Financial situation continues to improve
In June, transit agency operating revenues (excluding subsidies) reached $231.9 million―an increase of $104.3 million from the same month in 2021. While this total revenue was the highest level recorded since March 2020, it was still 30.0% below the operating revenues earned in June 2019, before the pandemic.
Chart 1
Urban public transit operating revenue and passenger trips, monthly, 2018 to 2022
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 data on operating revenue (excluding subsidies) and the number of passenger trips from a panel of urban transit companies that represents at least 75% of revenues in each province and territory. Note that the panel is adjusted annually to maintain the 75% coverage and could differ slightly from what it was in the same month the previous year.
Data prior to January 2017 can be found in Table 23-10-0078-01.
The Transportation Data and Information Hub, a web portal developed jointly by 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; infostats@statcan.gc.ca) or Media Relations (statcan.mediahotline-ligneinfomedias.statcan@statcan.gc.ca).
- Date modified: