LOS ANGELES (AP) — Southern California’s once-booming regional rail service Metrolink has been shedding riders in big numbers.
The Los Angeles Times (https://lat.ms/1lNpXRl) reports Monday that Metrolink has seen a drop of nearly 600,000 annual passengers since its 2008 peak.
Board members and analysts for Metrolink -which serves six counties with a combined population of 20 million - blame the dip on the recession and the lack of jobs making for fewer commuters.
And a housing and cultural renaissance in the train’s chief destination downtown Los Angeles hasn’t brought with it an employment boom that would draw more train riders.
Metrolink has been fighting the drop by courting employers, using social media and planning to equip cars with WiFi.
It has also publicized safety improvements made since a 2008 collision that killed 25 people.
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Information from: Los Angeles Times, https://www.latimes.com
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