SANTA MONICA, CA — Santa Monica's Big Blue Bus has topped 10 million rides for the second consecutive year as the city's transit system continues to recover from a dramatic drop in ridership during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Big Blue Bus provided more than 10 million rides to residents and visitors across the Los Angeles region for the second year in a row, city officials announced Tuesday.
The milestone represents a substantial recovery from 2020, when ridership plunged to around 5 million as pandemic shutdowns, social distancing and teleworking dramatically changed travel patterns. But ridership has not yet returned to pre-pandemic levels.
Big Blue Bus provided 12.5 million rides in 2019, according to the city. Ridership remained at around 6.3 million through 2022 amid the Omicron surge, remote learning at Santa Monica College and a nationwide shortage of bus drivers.
At more than 10 million rides, the system is now carrying at least 80 percent as many riders as it did in 2019.
"Providing 10 million rides for the second year in a row is a huge achievement for Big Blue Bus and speaks to the impact our investments in enhancing our service are making on our community," Santa Monica Transportation Director Anuj Gupta said.
"We're grateful to our riders for helping us reach this milestone and sharing their feedback along the way," Gupta added. "We've listened, made meaningful changes to improve the rider experience, and will keep building on that progress to better serve our community."
The milestone follows several changes aimed at making Big Blue Bus more convenient and attractive to riders. The agency began implementing its five-year Brighter Blue plan in 2024 in response to changing post-pandemic travel patterns and the expansion of the region's rail network.
The program has increased frequencies on some routes, expanded operating hours and improved connections to destinations including Downtown Santa Monica, UCLA, Metro Rail, the Culver City Transit Center and the LAX/Metro Transit Center.
Big Blue Bus has also installed or upgraded 190 bus-stop amenities since launching its Better Blue Bus Stops project in 2023, including seating, shelters, lighting and real-time arrival information.
Safety measures have included deploying Transit Safety Officers on high-traffic routes and introducing a program allowing the agency to prohibit some repeat offenders from using its buses and transit facilities.
Big Blue Bus also partnered with the Santa Monica Police Department on the Automated Bus Lane and Bus Stop Enforcement program, which uses cameras mounted inside buses to detect vehicles illegally parked in bus lanes and at bus stops.
The ridership recovery comes as Big Blue Bus continues its transition toward a fully zero-emission fleet. The agency purchased its first battery-electric bus in 2019 and now has 34 battery-electric buses in service, with another 40 expected in 2027, according to the city.
In April, Santa Monica broke ground on a $56 million expansion of Big Blue Bus' zero-emission fleet and charging infrastructure.
The project is largely funded through a $53.3 million grant from California's Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program and includes an overhead charging system designed to eventually support as many as 195 buses.
Big Blue Bus also carried more than 12,000 passengers as part of special service for this summer's FIFA World Cup, according to the city. The agency operated direct service from Downtown Santa Monica to all eight matches at Los Angeles Stadium and reported no safety incidents during the service.
City officials said the World Cup provided an opportunity to prepare for the increased transportation demand expected during the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Big Blue Bus will celebrate the 10 million-ride milestone during SoCal Transit Month at the Downtown Santa Monica Farmers Market on Sept. 30.
The agency will have a booth at the market from 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on the Third Street Promenade, where people who have never ridden Big Blue Bus — or haven't ridden recently — can receive a free ride or treat after getting help planning a trip.
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