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City of Tallahassee

Tallahassee, FL · NTD ID 40036 · 2024 report year

Annual trips2.5 million #185 in the US
Operating expense$27.0 million 2024, as reported
Cost per rider$10.99 all modes combined
Farebox recovery25.4% fares ÷ operating cost

City of Tallahassee carries 2.5 million passenger trips a year across two modes — bus and demand response — making it the 185th-busiest transit operator in the United States. It is based in Tallahassee, FL.

It spends $27.0 million a year running that service, or $10.99 per trip. Its bus service, the largest of its modes, costs $9.52 per rider — 31% below the $13.86 median for the 1,162 US agencies reporting bus.

Over the 10 years reported, ridership remains 33% below its 2019 level, the last full year before the pandemic, and down 5% on 2023. Fares cover 25% of operating cost.

Service by mode, 2024

ModeAnnual tripsOperating expense Cost per ridervs national median FareboxVehicles
Bus#155 of 1,162 nationally 2,335,648 $22.2 million $9.52 -31% 30% 57
Demand Response#222 of 1,920 nationally 119,146 $4.7 million $39.77 +5% 5% 79

Ridership, 2015–2024

3.8 million 1.2 million 2024 2015
YearAnnual trips Operating expense (2024 $)Cost per rider (2024 $)
2024 2,454,794 $27.0 million $10.99
2023 2,588,477 $29.1 million $11.25
2022 2,400,833 $28.2 million $11.74
2021 1,196,422 $22.1 million $18.44
2020 2,155,944 $20.6 million $9.57
2019 3,643,431 $25.5 million $7.01
2018 3,419,967 $22.9 million $6.69
2017 3,402,407 $22.7 million $6.68
2016 3,799,418 $22.0 million $5.78
2015 3,814,597 $21.0 million $5.50

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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.