Relationship of Commuter Routes to Central Business District Employment
Ronald E. Goodwin and Carol A. Lewis, Texas Southern University, June 2000, 50 pp. (721925-1)
There are many factors that may contribute to fluctuating transit ridership in a given region. Seasonal changes, gasoline prices, availability of parking facilities and parking prices, transit fares and downtown or central business district (CBD) employment are just a few. Ridership to a region’s CBD core generally represents transit’s strongest markets. Volumes of literature exist detailing the suburbanization trends in the US since the 1950s. This study will measure the relationship between CBD employment and transit ridership on commuter routes in the Houston area. The focus on commuter routes will establish a direct link to suburbanites and the Houston CBD since these routes are direct from the transit center or park and ride, to downtown.
A secondary focus of this study will include an examination of the suburbanization process known as “white flight” and its impacts, if any, on Houston’s demographics and potential transit ridership. It is our desire that this supplementary information may aid transit officials in determining if a captured market does exist that may need increased transit service in the future.
Keywords: Central Business District, Central Business District Employment, Passenger Trips, Commuter Ridership
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