Ames CyRide

Bus at Ames CyRide

Ames CyRide carried 4,700,906 bus boardings in FY2024 at $2.85 per ride. Ten years of National Transit Database figures for this service, with safety, reliability and the national comparison.

Bus Ames, IA
FY2024 boardings
4.7M
+13.9% vs FY2023
Cost per ride
$2.85
-5.6% nationwide $8.24
Subsidy per ride
$1.79
+29.8% operating cost less fares
Fare recovery
37.2%
-31.6% nationwide 11%
Passenger miles
7.1M
average trip 1.51 miles
Operating cost
$13.4M
Vehicles in service
62
at maximum service
Rides per revenue hour
36.66
128.2K hours operated

Ridership

Monthly data through July 2026.

This year against the last five

Same months on one axis, so seasonality does not read as a trend

Annual boardings

Ten-year series

Cost

This service against every bus operator in the country.

Cost per ride

This agency against the national figure for the same mode

Fare recovery

Share of operating cost covered by fares

Directly operated and purchased service, FY2024

NTD reports these separately. An agency that contracts a service out reports the contract price, which bundles costs a directly operating agency reports line by line.

Service Boardings Passenger miles Revenue hours Operating cost Cost / ride Subsidy / ride Fare recovery Vehicles
Directly operated 4,700,906 7,098,906 128,244 $13,401,234 $2.85 $1.79 37.2% 62

Safety and reliability

For this service alone.

Events by year

Complete calendar years only

Miles between failures

Revenue miles divided by mechanical failures. Higher is better.

Full series

Every year Ames CyRide reported this service.

Year Boardings Passenger miles Revenue miles Revenue hours Operating cost Fares Cost / ride Subsidy / ride Fare recovery
2024 4,700,906 7,098,906 1,320,410 128,244 $13,401,234 $4,979,845 $2.85 $1.79 37.2%
2023 4,128,413 6,233,904 1,268,158 124,014 $12,470,377 $6,773,055 $3.02 $1.38 54.3%
2022 3,656,805 5,887,456 1,276,110 125,314 $11,291,892 $2,573,303 $3.09 $2.38 22.8%
2021 1,855,926 2,988,040 1,247,364 121,288 $10,219,917 $1,592,065 $5.51 $4.65 15.6%
2020 4,569,664 7,357,159 1,236,826 119,228 $10,355,663 $4,121,704 $2.27 $1.36 39.8%
2019 6,112,643 9,856,054 1,288,098 127,538 $10,940,976 $4,657,646 $1.79 $1.03 42.6%
2018 6,563,162 10,582,238 1,327,384 127,536 $10,621,614 $4,817,799 $1.62 $0.88 45.4%
2017 6,648,750 10,704,856 1,318,881 126,827 $10,257,174 $4,985,477 $1.54 $0.79 48.6%
2016 6,773,556 10,920,773 1,328,006 127,692 $9,564,853 $4,048,652 $1.41 $0.81 42.3%
2015 6,699,351 10,801,986 1,263,680 122,680 $9,221,270 $4,404,193 $1.38 $0.72 47.8%