Metro Area Public Transit Tops 94M Rides in 2013

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) - Users of public transportation in the Twin Cities metro area logged more than 94 million rides last year.

The number represents a jump of 6 million rides since 2007.

The Star Tribune reports the steep increase is due in part to high gas prices, a recovering economy and more options for service.

Numbers released earlier this month show that last year, the suburban Minnesota Valley Transit Authority which serves Dakota County, set a new record of more than 2.7 million rides.

Maple Grove's transit service offered 836,443 rides last year - also a record.

Metro Transit didn't hit a record but provided 5 million more rides than it did four years earlier.