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City of Santa Clarita

Santa Clarita, CA · NTD ID 90171 · 2024 report year

Annual trips2.1 million #205 in the US
Operating expense$27.3 million 2024, as reported
Cost per rider$13.19 all modes combined
Farebox recovery5.7% fares ÷ operating cost

City of Santa Clarita carries 2.1 million passenger trips a year across three modes — bus, commuter bus and demand response — making it the 205th-busiest transit operator in the United States. It is based in Santa Clarita, CA.

It spends $27.3 million a year running that service, or $13.19 per trip. Its bus service, the largest of its modes, costs $8.52 per rider — 39% below the $13.86 median for the 1,162 US agencies reporting bus.

Over the 10 years reported, ridership remains 23% below its 2019 level, the last full year before the pandemic, and down 10% on 2023. Fares cover 6% of operating cost.

Service by mode, 2024

ModeAnnual tripsOperating expense Cost per ridervs national median FareboxVehicles
Bus#187 of 1,162 nationally 1,742,562 $14.9 million $8.52 -39% 7% 44
Commuter Bus#35 of 153 nationally 198,614 $3.2 million $16.10 -44% 12% 22
Demand Response#211 of 1,920 nationally 125,486 $9.2 million $73.31 +93% 1% 22

Ridership, 2015–2024

3.4 million 1.5 million 2024 2015
YearAnnual trips Operating expense (2024 $)Cost per rider (2024 $)
2024 2,066,662 $27.3 million $13.19
2023 2,289,665 $28.3 million $12.38
2022 1,900,958 $27.0 million $14.21
2021 1,523,936 $25.4 million $16.69
2020 2,131,694 $30.7 million $14.42
2019 2,681,213 $32.3 million $12.05
2018 2,775,323 $29.2 million $10.53
2017 2,864,351 $29.2 million $10.21
2016 3,167,020 $29.5 million $9.32
2015 3,422,015 $29.8 million $8.70

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Source & method. Figures are from the Federal Transit Administration's National Transit Database (NTD) annual reporting for 2024, the most recent published report year. Cost per rider is operating expense divided by unlinked passenger trips. Farebox recovery is fare revenue divided by operating expense. Ten-year trends are adjusted for inflation to 2024 dollars; single-year figures are as reported. Agencies self-report to the NTD, and reporting practice varies, so figures are best read as comparable in magnitude rather than to the cent.