Operating Above the Standard
Demand Response at Operating Above the Standard
Operating Above the Standard carried 847,674 demand response boardings in FY2025 at $41.07 per ride. Ten years of National Transit Database figures for this service, with safety, reliability and the national comparison.
Demand Response
Columbia, MO
FY2025 boardings
847.7K
-6.3%
vs FY2024
Cost per ride
$41.07
+4.3%
nationwide $52.35
Subsidy per ride
$36.46
+4.5%
operating cost less fares
Fare recovery
11.2%
-1.4%
nationwide 6.7%
Passenger miles
—
average trip — miles
Operating cost
$34.8M
Vehicles in service
271
at maximum service
Rides per revenue hour
2.18
389.1K hours operated
Ridership
Monthly data through December 2024.
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 demand response 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, FY2025
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 | 847,674 | — | 389,145 | $34,813,184 | $41.07 | $36.46 | 11.2% | 271 |
Full series
Every year Operating Above the Standard reported this service.
| Year | Boardings | Passenger miles | Revenue miles | Revenue hours | Operating cost | Fares | Cost / ride | Subsidy / ride | Fare recovery |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 847,674 | — | 7,067,579 | 389,145 | $34,813,184 | $3,910,667 | $41.07 | $36.46 | 11.2% |
| 2024 | 905,120 | — | 7,416,761 | 417,184 | $35,643,290 | $4,062,610 | $39.38 | $34.89 | 11.4% |
| 2023 | 993,924 | — | 7,755,423 | 441,137 | $31,483,823 | $5,568,792 | $31.68 | $26.07 | 17.7% |
| 2022 | 956,461 | — | 8,460,420 | 521,576 | $29,543,341 | $11,871,796 | $30.89 | $18.48 | 40.2% |
| 2021 | 824,591 | — | 10,308,874 | 547,490 | $25,905,683 | $7,191,593 | $31.42 | $22.69 | 27.8% |
| 2020 | 1,224,422 | — | 10,474,862 | 668,065 | $28,691,620 | $9,899,863 | $23.43 | $15.35 | 34.5% |
| 2019 | 1,420,691 | — | 14,653,297 | 772,284 | $29,210,250 | $11,493,672 | $20.56 | $12.47 | 39.3% |
| 2018 | 1,551,311 | — | 15,650,547 | 821,368 | $31,728,085 | $12,729,185 | $20.45 | $12.25 | 40.1% |
| 2017 | 1,485,288 | — | 14,018,103 | 696,400 | $28,023,827 | $331,014 | $18.87 | $18.64 | 1.2% |
| 2016 | 1,500,339 | — | 14,007,423 | 751,881 | $26,937,928 | $314,844 | $17.95 | $17.74 | 1.2% |
| 2015 | 1,486,541 | — | 13,449,664 | 720,403 | $27,300,030 | $310,783 | $18.36 | $18.16 | 1.1% |