During the pandemic, American transit ridership experienced a dramatic decline. Unlike other signs of urban life — foot traffic or museum visits — transit remains down not by a few percentage points, but by nearly one-quarter .

Nowadays, many regional transit authorities are in crisis. In Philadelphia where I live, a battle over funding Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) has been in the news for months. In many other cities and states, such as Illinois and Oregon , the future of transit funding is precarious.

In this time of great government funding retrenchment, is it inevitable that America will see a decline in transit ridership and funding for public transportation? Let’s hope not.

Yonah Freemark, research director at Urban Institute’s Land Use Lab,

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