Because Caltrain uses a Proof of Payment (PoP) System and has no fare gates or Automated Passenger Counters (APCs), Caltrain relies on 3 different methods for ridership reporting:
1) Fare Media Sales Based Ridership
Monthly Total Ridership and Average Weekday Ridership (AWR) based on Fare Media Sales using a ridership model, along with other Caltrain performance statistics measures, is included in each Caltrain Board of Directors monthly agenda packet. In each agenda packet, refer to the Caltrain Performance Statistics Staff Report.
Note: Due to drastic usage pattern and ticket purchasing pattern changes among Caltrain riders triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic, Caltrain does not estimate ridership based on Fare Media Sales. Since April 2020, this has been temporarily replaced by an alternative ridership estimation methodology based on limited conductor counts and Clipper usage data.
2) National Transit Database (NTD) Ridership
Caltrain provides Monthly and Fiscal Year (FY) end ridership to the NTD. Monthly ridership and FY end reported to the NTD is reported as Unlinked Passenger Trips (UPTs). Federally mandated on-board passenger counts are conducted to fulfill NTD requirements which require a random selection of statistically-valid rideschecks to represent the transit agency’s sample group. Caltrain Fiscal Year (FY) end ridership is statistically-valid as the quarterly sampling plan utilizes the NTD Sampling Template. The NTD profile for the Peninsula Corridor Joint Power Board (PCJPB), the governing body for the Caltrain, can be found on the NTD webpage.
3) Annual Count Ridership
Caltrain does an extensive onboard ridership count once a year in the January/February timeframe. The annual passenger counts are an actual census of passengers and are used to validate the monthly ridership estimation derived from fare media sales. The reports below contain key findings, including average number of weekday boardings at each station, bicycle ridership and station rankings.
Note: The Caltrain Annual Passenger Counts were not conducted in 2020 and 2021 due to COVID-19 pandemic.
The Caltrain 2020 Annual Count has been postponed due to impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic.
- 2019 Annual Count Key Findings Report(PDF, 6.83 MB)
- 2019 Annual Passenger Counts by Train - Weekdays(XLS 117 KB)
- 2018 Annual Passenger Counts(PDF, 7.3 MB)
- 2018 Annual Passenger Counts by Train – Weekdays (XLS, 103 KB)
- 2018 Annual Passenger Counts by Train – Weekends(XLS, 104 KB)
- 2017 Annual Count Key Findings Report (PDF, 10.8 MB)
- 2017 Annual Count by Trains – Weekdays (XLS, 4122 KB)
- 2017 Annual Count by Trains – Weekends (XLS, 270 KB)
- 2016 Annual Passenger Counts(PDF, 973 KB)
- 2016 Annual Passenger Counts by Train – Weekdays(.xls, 245 KB)
- 2016 Annual Passenger Counts by Train – Weekends(.xls, 124 KB)
- 2015 Annual Passenger Counts(PDF, 480 KB)
- 2014 Annual Passenger Counts(PDF,379 KB)
- 2013 Annual Passenger Counts (PDF, 213 KB)
- 2012 Annual Passenger Counts (PDF, 437 KB)
- 2011 Annual Passenger Counts (PDF, 313 KB)
- 2010 Annual Passenger Counts (PDF, 143 KB)
- 2009 Annual Passenger Counts (PDF, 151 KB)
- 2008 Annual Passenger Counts (PDF, 206 KB)
- 2007 Annual Passenger Counts (PDF, 1.08 MB)
- 2006 Annual Passenger Counts (PDF, 4.36 MB)
- 2005 Annual Passenger Counts (PDF, 3.82 MB)
- 2004 Annual Passenger Counts (PDF, 3.72 MB)
- 2003 Annual Passenger Counts (PDF, 1.78 MB)
- 2002 Annual Passenger Counts (PDF, 1.23 MB)