Many operators of passenger public transportation maintain an exclusion or trespass policy that effectively bans violators from using the system for a period of time in conjunction with, or in lieu of, other penalties related to the violation. Exclusion policies vary in scope, qualifiers, purpose, and approach. TCRP Synthesis 173: Transit Exclusion Policies in Public Transportation Systems , from TRB's Transit Cooperative Research Program, documents the practice of the use of transportation exclusio...

Fare evasion is generally defined as a passenger using public transit without paying the required fare or possessing the required fare media or valid proof of fare payment. Fare evasion has significant implications for the financial sustainability of transit systems and must be replaced by another stable source of funding. The TRB Transit Cooperative Research Program  TCRP Research Report 234: Measuring and Managing Fare Evasion explores in detail the recent past and emerging future of fare enforcem...

The nexus of transit with affordable housing, in some ways, is fundamental to transit’s very existence. Public transit provides a lower-cost mobility option for those who cannot or do not have a personal automobile to access regional destinations, including jobs, schools, and essential services. The TRB Transit Cooperative Research Program's TCRP Synthesis 162: Coordination of Public Transit Services and Investments with Affordable Housing Policies looks at the current body of published works focused on ...

Transit agencies in the United States are beginning to experiment with fare caps to ensure that passengers who pay for single rides do not pay more than multiple-ride passes included in their fare structure. The TRB Transit Cooperative Research Program's TCRP Synthesis 160: Fare Capping: Balancing Revenue and Equity Impacts includes a review of the literature; a survey of 35 North American transit agencies that have recently considered implementing, are in the planning stages of implementing, or have imp...

ADA paratransit demand continues to grow while resources are dwindling. Because of this, transit agencies continue to explore models to more effectively meet the demand. The TRB Transit Cooperative Research Program's TCRP Synthesis 161: ADA Paratransit and Other Demand-Responsive Transportation Services in Small to Midsized Transit Agencies explores paratransit delivery models for small and midsize systems and documents the way various service and contract models are structured, to enhance the knowledge ...

The TRB Transit Cooperative Research Program's TCRP Web-Only Document 74: Recent Decline in Public Transportation Ridership: Hypotheses, Methodologies, and Detailed City-by-City Results provides supplemental information to TCRP Research Report 231: Recent Decline in Public Transportation Ridership: Analysis, Causes, and Responses , which delves into exploring ridership losses already being experienced by transit systems prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Rethinking mission and service delivery, rethinking fare policy, giving transit priority, careful partnering with shared-use mobility providers, and encouraging transit-oriented density are among the strategies transit agencies can employ to increase ridership and mitigate or stem declines in ridership that started years before the COVID-19 pandemic. The TRB Transit Cooperative Research Program's  TCRP Research Report 231: Recent Decline in Public Transportation Ridership: Analysis, Causes, and Res...

Numerous transit agencies, of all sizes, have undertaken bus network redesigns across the United States and Canada over the past decade. The importance of incorporating equity considerations in the planning process is an emerging topic that is rapidly evolving, especially since 2020. The TRB Transit Cooperative Research Program's TCRP Synthesis 159: Assessing Equity and Identifying Impacts Associated with Bus Network Redesigns documents the current practice of how transit providers are defining, assessin...

The COVID-19 pandemic is having a profound effect on every infrastructure sector in North America, including transit systems, and on the information technology and operational technology systems that are embedded in their ongoing operations. The TRB Transit Cooperative Research Program's TCRP Synthesis 158: Cybersecurity in Transit Systems identifies and documents emerging cybersecurity trends related to teleworking/remote worker offices, contactless customer services, real-time information services, tra...

A high percentage of transit agencies believe social media is important for increasing ridership, improving customer satisfaction, and improving agency image. The TRB Transit Cooperative Research Program's TCRP Synthesis 156: Uses of Social Media in Public Transportation updates 2012's TCRP Synthesis 99: Uses of Social Media in Public Transportation and again explores the use of social media among transit agencies. It documents innovative and effective practices in the United States and Canada.