Bus ridership in Nashville has been rebounding after dramatic reductions seen nationwide during the height of the pandemic. And officials say the latest numbers show overall trips have surpassed pre-COVID levels.
WeGo says its strongest improvements are being seen on its bus route connecting to the airport (Route 18), and on some of the routes with the most frequent service, like those on Murfreesboro (55), Dickerson (23), and Nolensville (52) pikes. In the last part of 2023, ridership was 2.17 million — up 6% compared to the prior year.
That level of bus usage hadn’t been seen since late 2018, which was right before the agency eliminated some bus routes and adjusted others. Ridership dipped by nearly 7%. Then the pandemic hit — slashing transit ridership in half.
Some of the first corridors to rebound were those where WeGo has started running buses more frequently, and later into the night. One weak point is the WeGo Star commuter train. Ridership is still at half of its pre-pandemic level.
Correction: This story referenced a quarterly ridership figure as if it were annual, and has been fixed.
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