California is counting on public transit to help reach its climate and congestion goals. But transit ridership in the state is declining, especially in Southern California.

Despite heavy investments in public transportation over the past 15 years, including Los Angeles County’s Measure M, California lost 62.2 million annual transit rides between 2012 and 2016. With such political support and policy stakes invested in transit, why is ridership falling?

ITS researchers tried to figure out what’s going on by looking at the usual suspects: lower quality of service, cheaper fuel prices, higher fares, and the increased popularity of Lyft and Uber. But none of these potential causes fully explained the loss of riders in recent years. 

So what’s the culprit? And how can we solve the problem?

Watch the video and read the summary document below to find out: