Detroit public transit statistics show a network led by DDOT, with regional service from SMART and smaller rail systems including the Detroit People Mover and QLINE. In 2024, DDOT recorded 13,159,260 unlinked trips, while SMART recorded 6,053,170. The same year, the People Mover recorded 1,040,277 trips and M-1 Rail/QLINE recorded 1,143,100, according to Federal Transit Administration 2024 Annual Agency Profiles.
Contents
- Detroit transit ridership at a glance
- DDOT service area and bus operations
- DDOT service patterns, vehicles, and spending
- SMART regional transit scale and finances
- Rail systems and downtown service
- Fares, accessibility, and paratransit
Detroit transit ridership at a glance
The FTA’s 2024 agency profiles provide comparable annual measures for the major Detroit-area systems. An unlinked passenger trip counts a boarding rather than a complete origin-to-destination journey, so transfers can produce more than one unlinked trip.
| System | 2024 annual unlinked trips | Passenger miles traveled | Service-area population | Service area |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DDOT | 13,159,260 | 72,882,240 | 1,051,084 | 234 sq. mi. |
| SMART | 6,053,170 | 48,784,608 | 3,424,477 | 1,074 sq. mi. |
| Detroit People Mover | 1,040,277 | 1,456,388 | 92,477 | 3 sq. mi. |
| M-1 Rail/QLINE | 1,143,100 | 1,857,538 | 21,738 | 6 sq. mi. |
Source: [FTA 2024 Annual Agency Profile - City of Detroit], [FTA 2024 Annual Agency Profile - Suburban Mobility Authority for Regional Transportation], [FTA 2024 Annual Agency Profile - Detroit Transportation Corporation], and [FTA 2024 Annual Agency Profile - M-1 Rail]. The supplied agency profiles do not provide URLs here.
DDOT had the largest annual trip total among these four agencies, with more than twice SMART’s reported trips and more than ten times the People Mover’s total. SMART, however, reported the largest service area and population: 1,074 square miles and 3,424,477 people. These measures describe each agency’s reported service area, not a single shared metropolitan boundary.
Daily patterns also differed by mode. DDOT averaged 41,464 weekday unlinked trips, 27,815 Saturday trips, and 19,482 Sunday trips in 2024. The People Mover averaged 2,477 weekday trips, 4,530 Saturday trips, and 2,944 Sunday trips. M-1 Rail/QLINE averaged 3,216 weekday trips, 3,686 Saturday trips, and 2,168 Sunday trips. These are average day types reported in the FTA profiles, not forecasts.
DDOT service area and bus operations
DDOT reported a 2024 service-area population of 1,051,084 across 234 square miles. The City of Detroit says DDOT has 48 bus routes serving 138 square miles and 23 surrounding communities. The two area figures describe different reporting contexts: the FTA profile gives the agency’s service-area measure, while the city’s route description identifies the area associated with its bus network.
The FTA profile counted 376 DDOT revenue vehicles and 55 service vehicles in 2024. DDOT had four facilities, 261 vehicles operated in maximum service, and 390 vehicles available for maximum service. Its bus fleet had an average age of 7.0 years. The reported bus spare ratio was 64.0%, with 178 buses operated in maximum service and 292 buses available for maximum service.
Across all DDOT modes reported in the profile, the agency logged 12,207,941 annual vehicle revenue miles and 767,883 annual vehicle revenue hours. DDOT recorded 72,882,240 passenger miles traveled and 13,159,260 annual unlinked passenger trips.
Bus service accounted for 70,116,264 passenger miles traveled and 12,857,631 unlinked passenger trips. DDOT bus service logged 9,132,113 vehicle revenue miles and 580,489 vehicle revenue hours. Demand-response service produced 2,765,976 passenger miles traveled and 301,629 unlinked passenger trips, while logging 3,075,828 vehicle revenue miles and 187,394 vehicle revenue hours.
Those mode-specific totals show why a system-wide figure should not be treated as bus-only. DDOT’s fixed-route bus operation and demand-response operation are reported separately in the FTA profile, and their vehicle miles and hours are not interchangeable measures of passenger service.
DDOT service patterns, vehicles, and spending
DDOT’s 2024 total operating expenses were $120,159,243, and its total capital funds expended were $23,307,320. The agency’s operating funds totaled $169,069,640. Fixed-route bus operating expenses were $109,628,702, compared with $10,530,541 for demand-response service. Fixed-route bus fare revenues were $8,636,807, while demand-response fare revenues were $698,139.
The FTA profile reports $18,746,483 in federal capital funds, $4,557,364 in state capital funds, and $3,473 in local-government capital funds for DDOT in 2024. These are capital-funding categories in the agency profile and should not be read as a complete description of every public funding source.
DDOT’s fare and accessibility information comes from the City of Detroit’s transportation pages. The city lists a 4-hour pass at $2 and a 24-hour pass at $5. It also says all DDOT buses and routes are ADA accessible. These fare figures are listed prices, while the FTA fare-revenue figures are annual agency totals; they measure different aspects of the system.
The Jason Hargrove Transit Center was part of a $31 million redevelopment project. The City of Detroit describes the facility as 52,000 square feet serving five key routes: 4-Woodward, 12-Conant, 17-Eight Mile, 30-Livernois, and 54-Wyoming. These facility and route counts describe the center’s project and service role, not DDOT’s entire network.
SMART regional transit scale and finances
SMART, the Suburban Mobility Authority for Regional Transportation, reported 6,053,170 annual unlinked trips and 48,784,608 passenger miles traveled in 2024. Its reported service area covered 1,074 square miles and had a population of 3,424,477. SMART operated 436 revenue vehicles, had 61 service vehicles, and maintained seven facilities. The FTA profile reported 281 vehicles operated in maximum service.
SMART logged 12,554,344 annual vehicle revenue miles and 752,044 annual vehicle revenue hours in 2024. Its total operating expenses were $82,717,364. These FTA measures provide a service-operations view; SMART’s financial report provides additional budget and asset measures for its fiscal year.
SMART’s FY 2024 operating budget was $171.1 million, and its restricted pass-through revenue and expense budget was $11.5 million. Its approved federal/state capital spending plan for FY 2024 was $507.8 million. The agency estimated that its FY 2025 millage would generate $101 million and included approximately $44.5 million of Section 5307 funding in its FY 2024 capital budget.
SMART reported approximately $152.2 million invested in capital assets as of June 30, 2024, and approximately $20.5 million of capital assets added during FY 2024. Capital contribution spending in FY 2024 was approximately $19.7 million. At year-end, negotiable certificates of deposit were valued at $8,481,224 and U.S. government agency securities at $14,054,598.
The different SMART figures use different periods and definitions. The FTA profile uses calendar-year 2024 agency reporting, while the financial report includes FY 2024 and a June 30, 2024 balance date. Comparing them directly as if they were one accounting period would blur that distinction.
Rail systems and downtown service
The Detroit People Mover reported 1,040,277 annual unlinked trips and 1,456,388 passenger miles traveled in 2024. Its reported service area was 3 square miles with a population of 92,477. The system operated 10 revenue vehicles, had five service vehicles, 14 facilities, and six vehicles operated in maximum service. It logged 269,195 annual vehicle revenue miles and 23,208 annual vehicle revenue hours.
People Mover operating expenses were $20,618,955 and fare revenues were $185,448 in 2024. The FTA profile reported an average fleet age of 38.0 years and a vehicle spare ratio of 33.3%. The system’s weekend pattern was stronger than its weekday average in the supplied profile: 4,530 Saturday trips compared with 2,477 weekday trips and 2,944 Sunday trips.
M-1 Rail/QLINE reported 1,143,100 annual unlinked trips and 1,857,538 passenger miles traveled in 2024. Its service-area population was 21,738 across 6 square miles. The system operated six revenue vehicles, had four service vehicles, 21 facilities, and four vehicles operated in maximum service. It logged 108,652 annual vehicle revenue miles and 13,572 annual vehicle revenue hours.
M-1 Rail/QLINE’s 2024 operating expenses were $11,260,261, with $0 in fare revenues. Its average fleet age was 9.0 years. Transportation Riders United describes the QLINE as a 3.3-mile streetcar on Woodward Avenue, averaging nearly 3,200 daily riders in 2024. The organization also reports that the first day of the 2024 NFL Draft produced over 24,000 rides, the highest single-day total in system history.
QLINE survey measures add rider-experience context. Transportation Riders United reports that 85% of surveyed riders waited less than 15 minutes, 42% waited less than 10 minutes, and 78% were satisfied with their trips. A spring 2023 QLINE rider survey found that 60% of riders used it at least three times per week. In 2023, streetcars arrived in 15 minutes or less on 70% of trips, and QLINE surpassed 1 million riders, a 50% increase from 2022. The QLINE also surpassed 1 million riders in 2024.
The QLINE is free to ride and runs Monday through Saturday from 8 a.m. to midnight and Sunday from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m., according to its homepage. Its history page says it was formed in 2007 as M-1 RAIL to lead a 3.3-mile Woodward Avenue streetcar project. Operation and management transferred to the Regional Transit Authority in September 2024. The 2024 rider milestone announcement references 12 stations with newly installed art. Transportation Riders United reports that fare-free service continues until 2039 through a state subsidy.
Fares, accessibility, and paratransit
DDOT’s paratransit fare is $2.50 per trip. The City of Detroit says paratransit service is provided within a 3/4-mile area around all DDOT bus stops. This is a service-area standard around stops, not a claim that every trip anywhere in the region is covered.
DDOT Now, the agency’s same-day paratransit service, runs from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday. The city says trips can be booked as quickly as one hour in advance and use the same $2.50 fare as standard paratransit. It also reports that on-time performance for DDOT’s paratransit providers increased to at least 98% each.
Taken together, the 2024 figures describe a layered transit network: DDOT supplies the largest local bus ridership base, SMART covers a much larger regional geography, and the People Mover and QLINE concentrate service in smaller rail corridors. The measures above remain tied to their stated agency, source, and measurement period, so annual trips, daily averages, budgets, fares, and survey percentages should be read as distinct statistics rather than combined into one systemwide performance score.