DART News Release

Media Relations Contact:
Morgan Lyons
Mark Ball

November 21, 2008

DART ridership setting records even with falling pump prices

Despite the ongoing decline in gasoline prices DART ridership continued to grow in October setting records in total passenger trips in bus, DART Rail and the Trinity Railway Express.

Those modes along with the agency's High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lanes report growth in both average weekday and total ridership.

The table below compares October 2008 with October 2007.

Bus
Average weekday = 173,000 (7.2% increase)
Total = 4,533,100 (8.7% increase)
Previous high month, October 2001, 4,488,439

DART Rail
Average weekday = 71,400 (11.8% increase)
Total = 1,851,300 (11.3% increase)
Previous high month, August 2008, 1,806,621

Trinity Railway Express
Average weekday = 11,100 (18% increase)
Total = 327,500 (24.1% increase)
Previous high month, October 2007, 263,765

HOV
Average weekday = 163,928 (40.1% increase)
Total = 4,695,900 (42.2% increase)