Tri-County Metropolitan Transportation District of Oregon
Portland, OR · NTD ID 00008 · 2024 report year
Tri-County Metropolitan Transportation District of Oregon carries 64.7 million passenger trips a year across four modes — bus, light rail, demand response and hybrid rail — making it the 17th-busiest transit operator in the United States, and the largest in Oregon. It is based in Portland, OR.
It spends $716 million a year running that service, or $11.06 per trip. Its bus service, the largest of its modes, costs $9.70 per rider — 30% 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 up 13% on 2023. Fares cover 8% of operating cost.
Service by mode, 2024
| Mode | Annual trips | Operating expense | Cost per rider | vs national median | Farebox | Vehicles |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bus#17 of 1,162 nationally | 40,600,671 | $394 million | $9.70 | -30% | 8% | 459 |
| Light Rail#6 of 22 nationally | 23,393,585 | $251 million | $10.74 | -7% | 8% | 102 |
| Demand Response#34 of 1,920 nationally | 639,576 | $60.0 million | $93.79 | +146% | 15% | 240 |
| Hybrid Rail#6 of 6 nationally | 114,987 | $11.3 million | $98.55 | +139% | 1% | 3 |
Ridership, 2015–2024
| Year | Annual trips | Operating expense (2024 $) | Cost per rider (2024 $) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 64,748,819 | $716 million | $11.06 |
| 2023 | 57,442,650 | $656 million | $11.42 |
| 2022 | 49,615,343 | $542 million | $10.93 |
| 2021 | 40,308,533 | $582 million | $14.44 |
| 2020 | 78,183,734 | $628 million | $8.04 |
| 2019 | 96,633,005 | $637 million | $6.60 |
| 2018 | 97,033,281 | $600 million | $6.18 |
| 2017 | 99,045,313 | $574 million | $5.80 |
| 2016 | 101,702,561 | $557 million | $5.48 |
| 2015 | 101,380,984 | $518 million | $5.11 |
Where Tri-County Metropolitan Transportation District of Oregon ranks
- Cheapest Light Rail Systems by Cost per Rider #10 of 22
- Most Expensive Light Rail Systems by Cost per Rider #13 of 22
- Highest-Ridership Light Rail Systems #6 of 22
- Most Expensive Bus Systems by Cost per Rider #34 of 40
- Highest-Ridership Bus Agencies #17 of 40
- Most Expensive Demand-Response (Paratransit) Services by Cost per Rider #7 of 40
- Highest-Ridership Demand-Response (Paratransit) Services #34 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 Tri-County Metropolitan Transportation District of Oregon →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.