MBTA ranks as fourth busiest public transit in U.S.

PASSENGERS DISEMBARK from a
PASSENGERS DISEMBARK from a "T" train at Wickford Junction in July 2012. Last year, the MBTA serviced more than 165 million passengers, according to the American Public Transportation Association. / PBN FILE PHOTO/BRIAN MCDONALD

PROVIDENCE – The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority is the fourth busiest transit system in the United States, according to American Public Transportation Association data compiled by the Washington Business Journal.

The MBTA serviced more than 165 million passengers in 2012.

New York City Transit topped the list, with more than 2.5 billion passengers reported in 2012, almost 2.3 billion passengers more than the second-place Washington Metro Area Transit Authority. Washington’s public transit system serviced 281 million passengers last year.

Chicago’s transit authority ranked third with 231 million passengers, beating out the MBTA’s total by more than 66 million.

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San Francisco’s rapid transit system came in just behind the MBTA with 123 million passengers in 2012.

The full list of stats for the top 15 transit authorities in the U.S. is below.

  • No. 1: MTA New York City Transit | Total passengers in 2012: 2,544,892,400

  • No. 2: Washington, D.C., Metro Area Transit Authority | Total passengers in 2012: 280,904,200

  • No. 3: Chicago Transit Authority | Total passengers in 2012: 231,154,300

  • No. 4: Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (Boston) | Total passengers in 2012: 165,028,800

  • No. 5: San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District | Total passengers in 2012: 123,219,300

  • No. 6: Southeastern Pennsylvania Transit Authority (Philadelphia) | Total passengers in 2012: 98,171,300

  • No. 7: Port Authority of New York & New Jersey (Jersey City, N.J.) | Total passengers in 2012: 70,548,400

  • No. 8: Metro Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority | Total passengers in 2012: 70,506,800

  • No. 9: Los Angeles County MTA | Total passengers in 2012: 48,703,700

  • No. 10: Miami-Dade Transit Agency | Total passengers in 2012: 19,242,800

  • No. 11: Maryland Transit Administration (Baltimore) | Total passengers in 2012: 15,399,400

  • No. 12: Puerto Rico Department of Transportation (San Juan) | Total passengers in 2012: 11,023,500

  • No. 13: Port Authority Transit Corp. (Lindenwold, N.J.) | Total passengers in 2012: 10,612,900

  • No. 14: Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority | Total passengers in 2012: 6,239,900

  • No. 15: MTA Staten Island Railway (New York City) | Total passengers in 2012: 4,445,100

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