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Think public transit only benefits urban areas? Think again.
Think public transit only benefits urban areas? Think again.
This report focuses on transit in small cities—places with populations between 50,000 and 200,000, of which there are over 300 in the United States. From Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, to Rocky Mount, NC, see the ways small agencies keep people moving all across America.
Small Cities, Big Moves: Report Summary
Small Cities, Big Moves: Report Summary
In 2023, more than 7 billion trips were taken on America’s public transit systems, in towns, cities, and rural areas across the country.
Demand for transit is growing, as the cost of car ownership increases and fewer young people express interest in driving. Moreover, as America’s population ages, an increasing number of people will lose the desire or ability to drive. Transit provides an affordable option that allows everyone—including older adults, people with disabilities, youth, and people without cars—to continue participating in the economic and social life of their community.
To meet this demand, transit leaders are finding innovative ways to provide service. Too often, however, these agencies must make difficult trade-offs, shifting and even cutting services as resources are insufficient.
This report focuses on transit in small cities—places with populations between 50,000 and 200,000, of which there are over 300 in the United States. Transit serves an essential role in these communities, yet they are rarely studied.
As Congress prepares to reauthorize the federal transit program, we offer this report to highlight this important segment of the nation’s transit services. The federal reauthorization is especially important for these areas, which rely more heavily on transit funding from the federal government than their larger counterparts.
Operating Expenditures by Funding Source, 2023
Operating Expenditures by Funding Source, 2023
Capital Expenditures by Funding Source, 2023
Capital Expenditures by Funding Source, 2023
*”Other” includes fares and other revenues directly generated by the transit agency, such as advertising and joint development. (Source: National Transit Database)
Case Studies: Common Themes
Case Studies: Common Themes
In every one of the case study cities, transit plays a critical role in supporting the local economy, regardless of the type of industries present. Case study cities used transit to support manufacturing, health care, education, and tourism, among other things.
Small urban systems are modernizing, upgrading technology, and improving the customer experience, leading to increased ridership. The case study cities have seen consistent growth since the pandemic as customers respond to these improvements.
Small urban cities are often the regional hub for surrounding rural areas, and transit is an essential link between highly rural locations and regional services.
Transit agencies that serve small urban cities often have less dense bureaucracies than their larger counterparts, which allows them to be more nimble in meeting changing travel patterns and demand.
Strong local partnerships have enabled greater efficiency and increased transit’s ability to meet the demands of the local economy.
While progress is being made, funding constraints are inhibiting progress and leaving unmet demand, reducing productivity and increasing household costs.
Recommendations
Recommendations
Congress should increase funding for transit service in both the urban and rural programs. Several of the case study cities make use of funding from both programs, as they serve small urban as well as rural areas. This funding would enable transit systems in these communities to meet a greater portion of the demand than they can today.
Congress should reduce barriers to using federal funding efficiently by empowering transit providers to blend funding from multiple federal programs. Funding for transit is available from a variety of federal agencies, including not only the U.S. Department of Transportation but also the Veterans Administration, Department of Defense, and Department of Health and Human Services, among others. Today, many of these federal funds come with strings attached that prevent transit providers from effectively coordinating different types of services.
Congress should make it easier to use federal funding for transit by reducing the local match required for operating funding from 50% to 20%. Most federal transportation funding requires a 20% match. Reducing the match for transit operations funding would help small communities stretch their limited resources further.
Congress should fund the Federal Transit Administration to develop a team of experts who can be deployed to support staff at transit agencies that serve small urban areas. These technical experts should have specialized knowledge of strategies appropriate to areas of this size so that they can advise agencies that are expanding or modernizing their systems.
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