Frederick County Transit Services ridership has increased 62.9% since fiscal year 2022.

An estimated 903,900 rides were recorded in fiscal year 2026, compared to 555,030 in fiscal year 2022, according to a statement from Jaime McKay, Transit Services’ deputy director.

There were 928,655 trips in fiscal year 2025, the highest on record. McKay attributed the slight decrease in ridership this year to winter weather in January and February that led to limited service at times and more people staying home.

An estimated 302,883 people lived in Frederick County in 2025, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

The overall increase in ridership over the past few years was attributed largely to Transit Services’ Travel Training program, which offers customized individual and group training sessions to help people understand the transit system and feel confident using it, among other things, according to the division’s website.

“We’ve been administering this program for years, but have recently invested much more time and effort into ensuring our team members — from directors to drivers — know how to do this and can step in at a moment’s notice,” McKay wrote in her statement to The Frederick News-Post.

The Transit staff attended more than 85 community events, which the division estimates allowed them to reach more than 3,000 community members, according to McKay. These events, combined with increased outreach and advertising, also contributed to a rise in ridership.

“These combined efforts have played a critical role in rebuilding and surpassing pre‑2021 ridership levels,” McKay wrote.

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, ridership sat around 600,000 for fiscal years 2018 and 2019, the News-Post previously reported.

Ridership dropped to 492,460 in 2020 and 417,620 in 2021. This decrease happened on a nationwide scale following stay-at-home orders starting in February 2020 due to the pandemic, according to the Federal Transit Administration.

Frederick County's public transit has been free since March 2020.

Connector bus routes accounted for nearly 89% of estimated trips in fiscal year 2026. The 51 Connector route, which connects Waverley Drive to the Transit Center downtown, had the highest ridership and provided more than 132,000 passenger trips, according to McKay.

McKay wrote that the route’s frequent service and its coverage of both residential and essential service locations, such as Frederick Health Hospital, contribute to its popularity. The most popular shuttle in fiscal year 2026 was the North Frederick Shuttle, which saw more than 19,600 riders.

Though no additional routes were introduced in fiscal year 2026, the division conducted research and planning that led to several route changes and the new 15 Connector route, which launched in early July and offers service between Kingsbrook Crossing and downtown Frederick.

McKay wrote that the groundwork laid in fiscal year 2026 supported the service expansion in fiscal year 2027.

The Transit-Plus and Taxi Access programs offer transportation for people with disabilities or who are 60 and older.

While the Transit-Plus program has seen a rise in ridership each year since fiscal year 2021, the Taxi Access Program’s ridership has fluctuated more, decreasing from 8,170 in fiscal year 2025 to an estimated 6,100 in fiscal year 2026.

This decrease is due to limited taxi availability, McKay wrote, which the department has worked to address by adding two new providers, KM Comfort Carriers and Onward, toward the end of fiscal year 2026.

“While it’s still too early to show measurable increases in ridership, these two additional providers expand access and options for [Taxi Access Program] users,” McKay wrote.

The division expects continued growth over the next several years as the population of Frederick increases, which it has steadily done for decades.

“All of [Transit Services’] efforts combined lead to additional opportunities for folks to hop onboard, and our ridership reflects that,” McKay wrote. “Give folks a bus at times that work for them, and they’ll ride!”

© 2026 The Frederick News-Post (Frederick, Md.). Visit www.fredericknewspost.com.
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