The numbers are in for Capital Metro rides during SXSW and they’re over the top!
After ten days of extra service to accommodate the estimated 70,000 in attendance, ridership on MetroRapid and MetroRail topped last year’s event by 15 percent.
With 1,700 additional hours of service offered, there was no shortage of traveling options with MetroRapid, MetroRail, MetroAirport and local bus service.
The Numbers
MetroRail ran enhanced service on both Saturdays during the event, with an increased midday frequency of every 30 minutes, and special service on Sunday, March 15. Overall, Capital Metro provided nearly 63,000 total train rides, over 8,000 more than 2014. Ridership peaked on Thursday of the festival, with over 9,000 rides taken in one day alone. Ridership on Friday, March 20 was also strong, with close to 8,500 boardings.
Both MetroRapid routes together provided nearly 100,000 rides during the event, with a high of over 13,000 boardings on Thursday, March 19. This was the first year of service for Route 803 during SXSW, which saw almost 37,000 trips taken. MetroRapid ran until 2:30 a.m. on Friday, March 20 and Saturday, March 21.
“We were very pleased to see so many people taking advantage of our longer hours and more frequent service during this year’s event,” said Capital Metro President and CEO Linda S. Watson. “We wanted to make it convenient for people to get into and out of the city, and also move around the downtown area easily, so they could just relax and enjoy all the activities.”
