Sacramento Regional Transit District
Sacramento, CA · NTD ID 90019 · 2024 report year
Sacramento Regional Transit District carries 16.4 million passenger trips a year across three modes — bus, light rail and demand response — making it the 49th-busiest transit operator in the United States. It is based in Sacramento, CA.
It spends $254 million a year running that service, or $15.53 per trip. Its bus service, the largest of its modes, costs $14.01 per rider — 1% above the $13.86 median for the 1,162 US agencies reporting bus.
Over the 10 years reported, ridership remains 18% below its 2019 level, the last full year before the pandemic, and up 14% on 2023. Fares cover 7% of operating cost.
Service by mode, 2024
| Mode | Annual trips | Operating expense | Cost per rider | vs national median | Farebox | Vehicles |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bus#58 of 1,162 nationally | 9,026,468 | $126 million | $14.01 | +1% | 8% | 193 |
| Light Rail#14 of 22 nationally | 6,783,370 | $88.4 million | $13.04 | +13% | 8% | 44 |
| Demand Response#39 of 1,920 nationally | 551,744 | $39.1 million | $70.94 | +86% | 4% | 150 |
Ridership, 2015–2024
| Year | Annual trips | Operating expense (2024 $) | Cost per rider (2024 $) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 16,361,582 | $254 million | $15.53 |
| 2023 | 14,349,668 | $245 million | $17.10 |
| 2022 | 11,319,897 | $231 million | $20.40 |
| 2021 | 8,075,523 | $216 million | $26.77 |
| 2020 | 17,563,738 | $211 million | $12.00 |
| 2019 | 19,989,131 | $205 million | $10.27 |
| 2018 | 20,890,308 | $191 million | $9.16 |
| 2017 | 21,669,954 | $193 million | $8.89 |
| 2016 | 24,330,247 | $182 million | $7.49 |
| 2015 | 25,768,473 | $179 million | $6.95 |
Where Sacramento Regional Transit District ranks
- Cheapest Light Rail Systems by Cost per Rider #13 of 22
- Most Expensive Light Rail Systems by Cost per Rider #10 of 22
- Highest-Ridership Light Rail Systems #14 of 22
- Most Expensive Bus Systems by Cost per Rider #12 of 40
- Most Expensive Demand-Response (Paratransit) Services by Cost per Rider #11 of 40
- Highest-Ridership Demand-Response (Paratransit) Services #39 of 40
Ask a different question
These are the headline figures. Ask NTD answers the rest in plain English — by mode, by year, against any other agency.
Ask NTD about Sacramento Regional Transit District →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.