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Rock Island County Metropolitan Mass Transit District

Moline, IL · NTD ID 50057 · 2024 report year

Annual trips2.3 million #189 in the US
Operating expense$24.5 million 2024, as reported
Cost per rider$10.43 all modes combined
Farebox recovery3.9% fares ÷ operating cost

Rock Island County Metropolitan Mass Transit District carries 2.3 million passenger trips a year across three modes — bus, demand response and ferryboat — making it the 189th-busiest transit operator in the United States. It is based in Moline, IL.

It spends $24.5 million a year running that service, or $10.43 per trip. Its bus service, the largest of its modes, costs $9.69 per rider — 30% below the $13.86 median for the 1,162 US agencies reporting bus.

Over the 10 years reported, ridership remains 27% below its 2019 level, the last full year before the pandemic, and up 22% on 2023. Fares cover 4% of operating cost.

Service by mode, 2024

ModeAnnual tripsOperating expense Cost per ridervs national median FareboxVehicles
Bus#158 of 1,162 nationally 2,232,427 $21.6 million $9.69 -30% 3% 47
Demand Response#389 of 1,920 nationally 73,357 $2.0 million $27.35 -28% 6% 13
Ferryboat#32 of 39 nationally 39,988 $835,845 $20.90 +8% 23% 3

Ridership, 2015–2024

3.5 million 1.6 million 2024 2015
YearAnnual trips Operating expense (2024 $)Cost per rider (2024 $)
2024 2,345,772 $24.5 million $10.43
2023 1,927,164 $21.6 million $11.19
2022 1,752,633 $22.5 million $12.84
2021 1,623,350 $22.8 million $14.05
2020 2,675,920 $23.2 million $8.67
2019 3,224,280 $23.0 million $7.12
2018 3,270,807 $23.2 million $7.10
2017 3,257,763 $23.0 million $7.07
2016 3,471,534 $23.6 million $6.79
2015 3,511,287 $23.1 million $6.59

Where Rock Island County Metropolitan Mass Transit District ranks

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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.