Metra Ridership

Monthly total ridership figures by line and fare zone pair for a given month (January through December).

Data is available by line from 2002 through the current year. Data is available by fare zone pair from 2010 through the current year. Ridership reports are sent to the RTA by Metra staff on a monthly basis. 

It should be noted that the data is based on ticket sales and includes free rides. The data does not provide a breakdown by day type or time of day.

The rest of the files are from Metra's boarding and alighting surveys. 

Total boarding and alighting data is available for Metra's lines and stations from the following survey years: 1979, 1983, 1985, 1987, 1989, 1991, 1993, 1995, 1997, 1999, 2002, 2006, 2014, 2016, and 2018. There's also boarding and alighting data for Metra's lines and stations by direction and time of day. These figures were recorded in the following years: 1999, 2002, 2006, 2014, 2016, and 2018.

More information on Metra's boarding and alighting surveys can be accessed here: https://metra.com/station-level-data. 

Metra Monthly Ridership by Line (Metra_Monthly_Ridership_by_Line_2003_2022.csv)
LINE: The Metra line
YEAR: The data year
MONTH: The data month
RIDES: The monthly ridership figure

Metra Monthly Ridership by Fare Zone (Metra_Monthly_Ridership_by_Fare_Zone_2010_2022.csv)
YEAR: The data year
MONTH: The data month
ZONE_PAIR: The pair of Metra zones that were traveled between
MILES: General estimate of how many miles are traveled in the particular zone pair
RIDES: The monthly ridership figure

Metra Ridership by Line - Boarding & Alighting Survey (1979-2018)
(Metra_Ridership_by_Line_Boarding_Alighting_Survey_1979_2018.csv)
LINE: The Metra line
YEAR: The data year
BOARDS: The total number of boardings
ALIGHTS: The total number of alightings

Metra Ridership by Line - Boarding & Alighting Survey by Direction and Time of Day (1999-2018)
(Metra_Ridership_by_Line_Boarding_Alighting_Survey_Direction_TimeofDay_1999_2018.csv)
LINE: The Metra line
YEAR: The data year
DIRECTION: The train's direction of travel (Inbound or Outbound)
BOARDS: The total number of boardings
ALIGHTS: The total number of alightings
TIMEOFDAY: The time period the train was traveling
DEFINITION: More information regarding the time in which the train was traveling

Metra Ridership by Station - Boarding & Alighting Survey (1979-2018) (Metra_Ridership_by_Station_Boarding_Alighting Survey_1979_2018.csv)
STATION: The Metra station
YEAR: The data year
BOARDS: The total number of boardings
ALIGHTS: The total number of alightings

Metra Ridership by Station - Boarding & Alighting Survey by Direction and Time of Day (1999 -2018)
(Metra_Ridership_by_Station_Boarding_Alighting_Survey_Direction_TimeofDay_1999_2018.csv)
STATION: The Metra station
YEAR: The data year
DIRECTION: The train's direction of travel (Inbound or Outbound)
BOARDS: The total number of boardings
ALIGHTS: The total number of alightings
TIMEOFDAY: The time period the train was traveling
DEFINITION: More information regarding the time in which the train was traveling