The following is a list of all heavy rail rapid transit systems in the United States. It does not include statistics for bus or light rail systems; see: List of United States light rail systems by ridership for light rail systems. All ridership figures represent unlinked passenger trips, so line transfers on multi-line systems register as separate trips. The data is provided by the American Public Transportation Association's Ridership Reports.
Note: ridership does not mean unique passengers, it means total number of trips.
System | Transit agency | City/area served | Annual ridership, 2023 [1] | Avg. ridership weekdays, Q2 2024 [2] | System length | Avg. boardings per mile weekdays, Q2 2024 | Opened | Stations | Lines | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | New York City Subway | NYCTA [note 1] | New York City | 2,027,286,000 | 6,408,300 | 248 mi (399 km) [3] | 25,840 | 1904 [4] | 472 [4] | 26 [4] |
2 | Washington Metro | WMATA | Washington metropolitan area | 136,303,200 | 576,300 | 129 mi (208 km) [5] | 4,467 | 1976 [5] | 98 [5] | 6 |
3 | Chicago "L" | CTA | Chicago | 117,447,000 | 400,000 | 102.8 mi (165.4 km) [6] | 3,891 | 1892 [6] | 146 [6] | 8 [6] |
4 | MBTA subway ("The T") [note 2] (Blue, Orange, and Red lines) | MBTA | Boston | 85,397,200 | 265,900 | 38 mi (61 km) [7] | 6,997 | 1901 | 53 [7] | 3 [7] |
5 | PATH | PANYNJ | Manhattan, Hudson County, Newark | 55,109,100 | 185,600 | 13.8 mi (22.2 km) [8] [9] | 13,449 | 1908 [10] | 13 [8] | 4 [11] |
6 | Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) [note 3] | BART | San Francisco Bay Area | 46,397,300 | 159,700 | 131.4 mi (211.5 km) [12] | 1,341 | 1972 [13] | 50 [12] | 7 [14] |
7 | SEPTA Metro [note 4] (Broad Street (B), Market–Frankford (L), and Norristown (M) lines) | SEPTA | Philadelphia | 45,559,700 | 190,800 | 36.7 mi (59.1 km) [15] [16] | 5,199 | 1907 [17] | 75 [18] | 3 [18] |
8 | MARTA rail | MARTA | Atlanta | 31,110,300 | 90,500 | 47.6 mi (76.6 km) | 1,901 | 1979 [19] | 38 [20] | 4 [20] |
9 | Metro Rail [note 4] (B and D lines) | LACMTA | Los Angeles | 25,899,200 | 66,000 | 17.4 mi (28.0 km) [21] | 3,793 | 1993 [21] | 16 [21] | 2 [21] |
10 | Metrorail | Miami-Dade Transit | Miami | 13,439,300 | 50,900 | 24.4 mi (39.3 km) [22] | 2,086 | 1984 [23] | 23 [22] | 2 [22] |
11 | Staten Island Railway | SIRTOA [note 1] | Staten Island | 6,151,400 | 18,400 | 14 mi (23 km) [3] | 1,314 | 1860 [24] | 21 [3] | 1 [3] |
12 | PATCO Speedline | PATCO | Philadelphia, Camden County | 5,452,000 | 18,700 | 14.2 mi (22.9 km) [25] | 1,317 | 1936 [25] | 13 [25] | 1 [25] |
13 | RTA Rapid Transit [note 4] (Red Line) | GCRTA | Cleveland | 3,469,100 | 10,000 | 19 mi (31 km) [26] | 526 | 1955 [27] | 18 [26] | 1 [26] |
14 | Tren Urbano | ATI | San Juan | 2,738,100 | 16,200 | 10.7 mi (17.2 km) [28] | 1,514 | 2004 [28] | 16 [28] | 1 [28] |
15 | Baltimore Metro SubwayLink | MTA | Baltimore | 1,988,300 | 5,400 [note 5] | 15.5 mi (24.9 km) [29] | 351 | 1983 [30] | 14 [29] | 1 [29] |
16 | Skyline | Honolulu DTS | Honolulu | 614,800 | 3,700 | 10.8 mi (17.4 km) | 343 | 2023 [31] | 9 [31] | 1 [31] |
The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) is a regional public transportation authority that operates bus, rapid transit, commuter rail, light rail, and electric trolleybus services for nearly four million people throughout five counties in and around Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It also manages projects that maintain, replace, and expand its infrastructure, facilities, and vehicles.
The Staten Island Railway (SIR) is a railroad line in the New York City borough of Staten Island. It is owned by the Staten Island Rapid Transit Operating Authority (SIRTOA), a subsidiary of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, and operated by the New York City Transit Authority Department of Subways. SIR operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, providing local service between St. George and Tottenville, along the east side of the island. There is currently only one line on the island, and there is no direct rail link between the SIR and the New York City Subway system, but SIR riders do receive a free transfer to New York City Transit bus and subway lines, and the line is included on official New York City Subway maps. Commuters on the railway typically use the Staten Island Ferry to reach Manhattan. The line is accessible from within the Ferry Terminal, and most of its trains are timed to connect with the ferry. In 2023, the system had a ridership of 6,151,400, or about 18,400 per weekday as of the second quarter of 2024.
The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LACMTA), branded as Metro, is the county agency that plans, operates, and coordinates funding for most of the public transportation system in Los Angeles County, California, the most populated county in the United States.
The Norristown High Speed Line (NHSL), currently rebranding as the M, is a 13.4-mile (21.6 km) interurban light rapid transit line in the SEPTA Metro network, running between the 69th Street Transportation Center in Upper Darby and the Norristown Transportation Center in Norristown, Pennsylvania. Service is operated by the Suburban Transit Division of the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority. Originally the Philadelphia and Western Railroad line, the line runs entirely on its own right-of-way. By 2020, the Norristown High Speed Line had an average weekday ridership approaching 11,000 passengers.
Miami-Dade Transit (MDT) is the primary public transit authority of Miami, Florida and the greater Miami-Dade County area. It is the largest transit system in Florida and the 15th-largest transit system in the United States. As of 2023, the system has 80,168,700 rides per year, or about 276,400 per weekday in the second quarter of 2024. MDT operates the Metrobus with their paratransit STS systems run by LSF. MDT also operates two rail transit systems: Metrorail and Metromover.
The SEPTA Regional Rail system is a commuter rail network owned by SEPTA and serving the Philadelphia metropolitan area. The system has 13 branches and more than 150 active stations in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, its suburbs and satellite towns and cities. It is the sixth-busiest commuter railroad in the United States. In 2016, the Regional Rail system had an average of 132,000 daily riders and 118,800 daily riders as of 2019.
The Los Angeles Metro Rail is an urban rail transit system serving Los Angeles County, California, United States, consisting of six lines: four light rail lines and two rapid transit lines, serving a total of 102 stations. The system connects with the Metro Busway bus rapid transit system, the Metrolink commuter rail system, as well as several Amtrak lines. Metro Rail is owned and operated by the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro).
The transportation system of New York City is a network of complex infrastructural systems. New York City, being the most populous city in the United States, has a transportation system which includes one of the largest and busiest subway systems in the world; the world's first mechanically ventilated vehicular tunnel; and an aerial tramway. New York City is home to an extensive bus system in each of the five boroughs; citywide and Staten Island ferry systems; and numerous yellow taxis and boro taxis throughout the city. Private cars are less used compared to other cities in the rest of the United States.
Metrorail is a rapid transit system in Miami and Miami-Dade County in the U.S. state of Florida. Metrorail is operated by Miami-Dade Transit (MDT), a departmental agency of Miami-Dade County. Opened in 1984, it is Florida's only rapid transit metro system, and is currently composed of two lines of 23 stations on 24.4 miles (39.3 km) of standard gauge track. Metrorail serves the urban core of Miami, connecting Miami International Airport, the Health District, Downtown Miami, and Brickell with the northern developed neighborhoods of Hialeah and Medley to the northwest, and to suburban The Roads, Coconut Grove, Coral Gables, and South Miami, ending at urban Dadeland in Kendall. Metrorail connects to the Metromover in Downtown, which provides metro service to the entirety of Downtown and Brickell. Additionally, it connects to South Florida's commuter rail system at Tri-Rail station, as well as Metrobus routes at all stations. In 2023, the system had 13,439,300 rides, and about 50,900 per day in the second quarter of 2024.
Light rail is a mode of rail-based transport, usually urban in nature. When compared to heavy rail systems like commuter rail or rapid transit (subway), light rail systems are typically designed to carry fewer passengers and are capable of operating in mixed traffic or on routes that are not entirely grade-separated. Systems typically take one of four forms: the "first-generation" legacy systems, the "second-generation" modern light rail systems, streetcars, and hybrid rail systems. All of the systems use similar technologies, and some systems blur the lines between the different forms.
The Miami metropolitan area composed of the three counties of Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach, also known collectively as South Florida, is home to a wide variety of public and private transportation systems.