The following is a list of all light rail systems in the United States, ranked by ridership. Also included are those urban streetcar/trolley systems that are providing regular public transit service (i.e. operating year-round and at least five days/week). This list does not include statistics for metro/rapid transit systems (see: the List of United States rapid transit systems by ridership for those). Daily and annual ridership figures are based on "average weekday unlinked passenger trips" (where transfers between lines are counted as two separate passenger "boardings" or "trips"). The annual ridership figures for 2016 and average weekday ridership figures for the fourth quarter (Q4) of 2016 come from the American Public Transportation Association's (APTA) Ridership Reports statistics for the fourth quarter (Q4) of 2016,[1] unless otherwise noted (e.g. NJ Transit systems). References with supplementary (i.e. non-APTA) ridership figures are included in the System column.
System | Largest city served |
Annual Ridership (2016)[1] |
Avg. daily weekday boardings (Q4 2016)[1] |
System length |
Avg. daily boardings per mile (Q4 2016) |
Year opened |
Stations | Lines | Year last expanded | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | MBTA light rail:[note 1] Green Line & Ashmont–Mattapan High Speed Line[note 2] |
Boston | 69,236,700 | 226,500 | 26 miles (42 km)[2] | 8,711 | 1897;[3] 1929 |
74[2] | 5[2] | 2004; n/a |
2 | Metro Rail light rail:[note 1] Blue, Expo, Gold & Green Lines |
Los Angeles | 65,829,000 | 211,700 | 88.1 miles (141.8 km)[4] | 2,403 | 1990[4] | 80[4] | 4[4] | 2016[4] |
3 | Muni Metro[note 1][5] (incl. E Embarcadero[note 2] & F Market[6][7][note 2]) |
San Francisco | 52,597,300 | 164,300 | 35.7 miles (57.5 km)[8] | 4,602 | 1912;[9] 1980[8] |
152[7][8] | 9[6][8] | 2007 |
4 | MAX Light Rail[note 3] | Portland | 40,240,300 | 124,200 | 60 miles (97 km) | 2,070 | 1986 | 97 | 5 | 2015 |
5 | San Diego Trolley[note 3] (incl. Silver Line[10][note 2]) |
San Diego | 38,068,600 | 114,500 | 53.5 miles (86.1 km)[11] | 2,140 | 1981[11] | 53[11] | 4[10][11] | 2005[11] |
6 | DART[note 3] | Dallas | 29,619,500 | 101,500 | 93 miles (150 km)[12] | 1,091 | 1996[13] | 64[12] | 4[14] | 2016[13] |
7 | SEPTA light rail:[15][note 1] Subway–Surface Lines, Suburban Trolley Lines & Girard Ave Trolley[note 2] |
Philadelphia | 25,127,600 | 82,000 | 68.4 miles (110.1 km)[16][17] | 1,199 | 1906 | >100[16] | 8[16][17] | 2005 |
8 | Denver RTD:[note 3] C, D, E, F, H, R, and W Lines |
Denver | 24,585,000 | 75,900 | 58.5 miles (94.1 km)[18] | 1,297 | 1994[19] | 62[18] | 7 | 2017[20] |
9 | METRO Light Rail[note 3] | Minneapolis-St. Paul | 22,963,500 | 72,900 | 21.8 miles (35.1 km)[21][22] | 3,344 | 2004[21] | 37[21][22] | 2[21][22] | 2014[22] |
10 | TRAX (UTA) and S Line[note 3] | Salt Lake City | 19,220,300 | 64,300 | 46.8 miles (75.3 km)[23][24] | 1,374 | 1999[25] | 56[26] | 4[26] | 2013 |
11 | Central Link[note 3] | Seattle | 19,121,621[27] | 66,203[27] | 20.4 miles (32.8 km)[28] | 3,245 | 2009 | 16[28] | 1[28] | 2016[29] |
12 | METRORail | Houston | 18,335,800 | 56,600 | 23.8 miles (38.3 km)[30][31] | 2,378 | 2004[31] | 44[30] | 3[30] | 2017[30] |
13 | Valley Metro Rail[32] | Phoenix | 16,322,800 | 51,200 | 26.3 miles (42.3 km)[33] | 1,947 | 2008[34] | 35[35] | 1[34] | 2016[36] |
14 | Hudson–Bergen Light Rail [note 1][37] |
Jersey City | 15,450,736[38] | 51,867[38] | 17 miles (27 km)[38] | 3,051 | 2000 | 24[39] | 3[39] | 2011 |
15 | MetroLink | St. Louis | 15,343,900 | 45,800 | 46 miles (74 km)[40] | 996 | 1993[41] | 37[40] | 2[42] | 2006[43] |
16 | Sacramento RT Light Rail | Sacramento | 12,286,600 | 41,300 | 42.9 miles (69.0 km)[44] | 963 | 1987[44] | 53[44] | 3[44] | 2015[44] |
17 | Santa Clara VTA Light Rail[note 3] |
San Jose | 9,931,100 | 29,900 | 42.2 miles (67.9 km)[45] | 709 | 1987[45] | 62[45] | 3[45] | 2005[45] |
18 | RTA Streetcars in New Orleans[note 2] |
New Orleans | 8,084,400 | 24,900 | 22.3 miles (35.9 km)[46][47] | 1,117 | 1835 | streetcar-like surface stops | 4[46] | 2013[46] |
19 | The T: Pittsburgh Light Rail |
Pittsburgh | 7,783,100 | 21,324[note 4] | 26.2 miles (42.2 km)[48] | 814 | 1984[note 5] | 53[48] | 2[48] | 2012[48] |
20 | San Francisco cable car system[note 2][note 6] |
San Francisco | 6,910,000 | 17,700 | 5.2 miles (8.4 km) | 3,404 | 1878[49] | streetcar-like surface stops | 3[7][50] | 1952 |
21 | Baltimore Light Rail[note 1] | Baltimore | 6,888,500 | 22,800 | 33 miles (53 km)[51] | 691 | 1992 | 33[51] | 3[51] | 1997 |
22 | Newark Light Rail[note 1][37] | Newark | 5,724,544[38] | 19,994[38] | 6.2 miles (10.0 km)[38] | 3,225 | 1935 | 16[39] | 2[39] | 2006 |
23 | Charlotte Area Transit System: Blue and Gold Lines |
Charlotte | 5,147,500 | 16,400 | 11.1 miles (17.9 km)[52] | 1,477 | 2007[53] | 20[52] | 2[52] | 2018 (planned)[54] |
24 | Buffalo Metro Rail | Buffalo | 4,899,700 | 17,500 | 6.4 miles (10.3 km) | 2,734 | 1984 | 14[55] | 1[55] | n/a |
25 | Portland Streetcar[note 7] | Portland | 4,623,520[56][note 8] | 15,248[56][note 9] | 7.35 miles (11.83 km)[57] | 2,075 | 2001[57] | 76[57] | 2[57] | 2015[58] |
26 | River LINE[note 1][59] | Trenton- Camden |
2,830,339[38] | 8,954[38] | 34 miles (55 km)[38] | 263 | 2004 | 20[60] | 1[60] | 2013 |
27 | SPRINTER[note 3][61] | Oceanside -Escondido |
2,600,700 | 8,500 | 22 miles (35 km)[62] | 386 | 2008[62] | 15[62] | 1[62] | n/a |
28 | RTA Rapid Transit:[note 10] Blue and Green Lines |
Cleveland | 2,485,900 | 6,810[note 4] | 15.3 miles (24.6 km)[63] | 445 | 1913[64] | 34[63] | 2[63] | 1996[64] |
29 | KC Streetcar | Kansas City | 2,000,000[65] | 5,732[66] | 2.2 miles (3.5 km) | 3,290[67] | 2016 | 10 | 1 | n/a |
30 | Tide Light Rail | Norfolk | 1,399,500 | 4,300 | 7.4 miles (11.9 km)[68] | 581 | 2011[69] | 11[68] | 1[68] | n/a |
31 | Tacoma Link[note 3] | Tacoma | 937,885[27] | 3,235[27] | 1.6 miles (2.6 km)[28] | 2,022 | 2003 | 5[28] | 1[28] | n/a[29] |
32 | DC Streetcar | Washington, D.C. | 745,400 | 2,800 | 2.4 miles (3.9 km) | 1,167 | 2016 | 8 | 1 | n/a |
33 | Seattle Streetcar[note 3] | Seattle | 518,300 | 1,900 | 3.8 miles (6.1 km) | 500 | 2007 | 21 | 2 | 2016 |
34 | Sun Link | Tucson | 460,737[70] | 2,313[70] | 3.9 miles (6.3 km)[71] | 593 | 2014 | 22[71] | 1[71] | n/a |
35 | Atlanta Streetcar | Atlanta | 371,000 | 700 | 2.7 miles (4.3 km) | 259 | 2014 | 12 | 1 | n/a |
36 | TECO Line Streetcars[note 2] | Tampa | 294,600 | 600 | 2.7 miles (4.3 km)[72] | 222 | 2002 | 11[73] | 1[73] | 2010 |
37 | Dallas Streetcar | Dallas | n/a | n/a | 2.45 miles (3.94 km) | n/a | 2015 | 6 | 1 | 2016 |
38 | Cincinnati Bell Connector[74] | Cincinnati | n/a | n/a | 3.6 miles (5.8 km)[75] | n/a | 2016[76] | 10[75] | 1 | n/a |
39 | Q-Line | Detroit | n/a | n/a | 3.3 miles (5.3 km) | n/a | 2017 | 20 | 1 | n/a |
The following light rail systems have been excluded from the ridership table above:
System | Largest city served | Opened | Route length | Reason(s) for exclusion from Ridership table |
---|---|---|---|---|
Galveston Island Trolley | Galveston, TX | 1988[77] | 6.8 miles (10.9 km)[77] | Galveston's heritage streetcar trolley system is non-operational – it has suspended its service since September 2008 due to damage from Hurricane Ike. |
Kenosha Streetcars | Kenosha, WI | 2000[78] | 2.0 miles (3.2 km)[78] | This heritage streetcar system is primarily a tourist system (e.g. does not operate daily, year-round), rather than a transit system; Kenosha's transit systems are too small to be tracked by APTA. |
Metro Streetcar | Little Rock, AR | 2004[79] | 3.4 miles (5.5 km)[79] | This heritage streetcar system is primarily a tourist system, rather than a transit system; APTA does not provide ridership figures for this system. |
River Street Streetcar | Savannah, GA | 2009 | 1.0 mile (1.6 km) | This heritage streetcar system is primarily a tourist system, rather than a transit system; APTA does not track this system. |