Metro riders in Washington, D.C., are as happy with public transit as they’ve been in a decade, but not all is well in the capital’s underground stations.
Despite high levels of satisfaction with the train system generally, safety remains a great concern as serious crime such as rape, robbery, and homicide on the Metro have doubled from 2022 to 2023.
A Washington Post-Schar School poll found that 77% of regular and occasional Metro riders rated the system as either “excellent” or “good,” and those who rode the Metro at least once a month rated the system with an 86% overall positive satisfaction. Rider satisfaction has drastically grown in the past seven years, for in 2017, only 45% of riders gave the system a positive rating.
More than three-quarters of riders said the Metrorail service is reliable, and nearly three-quarters said the system provides a good value. But when it comes to the system’s safety from crime, more than one-third rated the system negatively.
Safety concerns were more prevalent with riders under 50 years old as well as black and Hispanic riders than riders who were white and older.
Between 2020 and 2023, incidents of reported crime on the Metrorail nearly quadrupled, but this is largely attributed to fare evasion. An analysis from last year found that 14% of Metrorail trips go unpaid, contributing to an approximate loss of $40 million a year. This has led Metro to install high saloon-style fare gates at 48 Metrorail stations, leading to a nearly 80% drop in fare evasions in those locations.
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The poll comes as the rail system lacks a dedicated funding source and will likely continue to struggle with securing funds in the future. Last month, Metro announced it will increase fare prices by 12.5% starting in July. Base rail fares will increase from $2 to $2.25, and maximum fares will increase from $6 to $6.75.
Compared to pre-pandemic levels, weekly Metro ridership is down by 40% as more and more workers have shifted to working from home. The poll found that around half of the region’s workers are able to work from home.
