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Greater Dayton Regional Transit Authority

Dayton, OH · NTD ID 50017 · 2024 report year

Annual trips6.2 million #97 in the US
Operating expense$74.6 million 2024, as reported
Cost per rider$11.95 all modes combined
Farebox recovery8.6% fares ÷ operating cost

Greater Dayton Regional Transit Authority carries 6.2 million passenger trips a year across three modes — bus, trolleybus and demand response — making it the 97th-busiest transit operator in the United States. It is based in Dayton, OH.

It spends $74.6 million a year running that service, or $11.95 per trip. Its bus service, the largest of its modes, costs $10.09 per rider — 27% below the $13.86 median for the 1,162 US agencies reporting bus.

Over the 10 years reported, ridership remains 34% below its 2019 level, the last full year before the pandemic, and down 5% on 2023. Fares cover 9% of operating cost.

Service by mode, 2024

ModeAnnual tripsOperating expense Cost per ridervs national median FareboxVehicles
Bus#103 of 1,162 nationally 4,297,559 $43.4 million $10.09 -27% 10% 64
Trolleybus#4 of 4 nationally 1,713,249 $10.4 million $6.10 +9% 16% 16
Demand Response#107 of 1,920 nationally 229,545 $20.8 million $90.49 +138% 3% 58

Ridership, 2015–2024

10.3 million 5.3 million 2024 2015
YearAnnual trips Operating expense (2024 $)Cost per rider (2024 $)
2024 6,240,353 $74.6 million $11.95
2023 6,578,178 $73.7 million $11.20
2022 5,666,081 $69.0 million $12.18
2021 5,314,926 $75.4 million $14.20
2020 6,061,404 $82.4 million $13.59
2019 9,416,615 $94.0 million $9.98
2018 9,128,764 $90.9 million $9.96
2017 9,072,280 $94.9 million $10.46
2016 9,973,237 $87.8 million $8.80
2015 10,348,856 $81.1 million $7.84

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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.