New buses boost Metro McAllen to flashy ridership stats

McALLEN — McAllen’s new lime-green buses haven’t just attracted attention — they’ve also persuaded thousands to try public transit.

Nearly 43,000 passengers boarded city buses in March, the highest ridership during normal travel, said Transit Director Elizabeth Suarez, who oversees Metro McAllen. She was citing the latest available passenger data, which reflects the first full month since McAllen introduced the new buses.

A co-worker at La Siberia, a restaurant near the intersection of Pecan Boulevard and 10th Street, helped persuade Sarai Gonzalez to try the bus. The 22-year-old waitress said Wednesday morning’s ride to work would be her third trip.

“You meet a lot of people. You never know who rides the bus,” Gonzalez said. “The first time I rode the bus, I met five people I knew. I never knew they rode the bus.”

Rising gas prices, reliable transportation and the price — $1 for adults, 50 cents for people older than 60, and free for children younger than 7 — make riding the bus attractive, Gonzalez said.

Passenger numbers have increased steadily in the past five years, rising from 351,000 during 2005 to 426,000 last year. McAllen tracks passengers using its fiscal year, which runs from Oct. 1 to Sept. 30.

Brownsville’s BUS, an acronym for Brownsville Urban System, also noticed more passengers in March. Approximately 152,000 passengers used BUS in March, up 15.4 percent from March 2010.

To expand its reach, Metro McAllen has been marketing to students at South Texas College and the University of Texas-Pan American, Suarez said. With new buses, it’s not a difficult sell.

Of course, having big signs at every gas station doesn’t hurt, either.

“We do have this constant reminder at every corner, virtually, of how much gas is taking (out) of our income,” said Michael Minor, a marketing professor at UTPA who studies consumer behavior.

Perhaps more than anything else, consumers know the price of gas. Those prices ripple throughout the economy, affecting consumer confidence and overall spending.

With prices up roughly 90 cents since January, according to The Monitor’s daily survey of local gas stations, the price looms larger than normal.

Still, the nearly 43,000 passengers in March represents roughly one bus trip for every four residents.

“The trick now is to continue that momentum,” Suarez said.

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Dave Hendricks covers McAllen and general assignments for The Monitor. He can be reached at (956) 683-4452.