Muni ridership reaches highest levels since start of COVID-19 pandemic

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SAN FRANCISCO - APRIL 25: Passengers board a MUNI bus along Market Street April 25, 2006 in San Francisco. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

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SAN FRANCISCO - The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency is getting back on track as officials report ridership numbers have reached their highest levels since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

By the numbers:

The agency reported Tuesday that nearly 15 million people used its Muni Metro services in March, which is equivalent to about 85% of the numbers from March 2019 and also an 8% bump when compared to last year.

The SFMTA said more people using the transit system have greatly contributed to the year-over-year recovery, and partly attributed the ridership increases to popular community events such as the Chinese New Year Parade and Tulip Day at Union Square.

What's next:

The SFMTA Board of Directors last week approved a two-year operating budget that allots more than $3.1 billion for fiscal years 2026-2027 and 2027-2028.

The transit agency said the budget was made possible through unspecified cost-cutting measures and the hope that voters will approve two sales tax measures in November that would financially benefit the SFMTA.

The backstory:

SFMTA and other Bay Area transit agencies have long struggled to recover from ridership slumps related to the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced a vast number of people to work from home and restrict travel for months in order to limit the spread of the deadly virus.