Despite gasoline and diesel prices surging since the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran on Feb. 28, Palm Beach County and South Florida commuters refuse to choose public transportation over driving their cars, recent data shows.
While Palm Beach County’s publicly funded bus system, Palm Tran, and South Florida’s publicly funded passenger train, Tri-Rail, gained riders in March, they lost travelers in April, and ridership during the first four months of 2026 remains lower compared to the same time period in 2025.
Florida’s privately run passenger train, Brightline, however, continues gaining passengers despite costing more than either driving or public transportation.
Tri-Rail, Palm Tran saw ridership rise in March but drop in April
Palm Tran reported gaining nearly 60,000 passengers in March, surpassing 732,000, as AAA reported the county’s average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gas leaped to $4.06 in mid-March from $3.04 in late February.
But then bus ridership slumped by nearly 17,000 as gas climbed to about $4.20 a gallon by late April.
Palm Tran counted an average of about 706,000 each month from January through April this year, lower than the monthly average of 742,000 during the first four months of 2025.
Tri-Rail, which spans Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade counties, gained nearly 57,000 riders in March, surpassing 402,000 total for the month, before declining to about 393,000 in April.
Tri-Rail logged an average of more than 378,000 riders each month this year for January through April, lower than the 396,000 monthly average the first four months of 2025.
Even with lower overall ridership, Tri-Rail has boasted single-day records this year due to special events and special rail service to and from them. Most recently, on Sunday, May 17, the train ferried more than 8,600 passengers up and down South Florida following the Inter Miami CF soccer match against Portland at Nu Stadium in Miami.
Tri-Rail’s funding is in jeopardy. The Florida Department of Transportation cut its expected contribution to the train’s budget last July by $27 million. The service also faces a $30 million deficit on top of that once COVID-19 relief funds from 2021 run out.
Tri-Rail would stop running by July 2027 without new sources of funding, rail officials have said. Florida lawmakers have not agreed either to reinstating or increasing Tri-Rail funding as they work to complete a state budget that would take effect July 1.
Brightline ridership is increasing, meanwhile. The company sold more than 396,000 trips in South Florida the first three months of this year, its latest ridership report shows, up from over 325,000 during the first quarter of 2025.
Gasoline in Palm Beach County averaged $3.20 to $3.30 per gallon in March and April of 2025.
Dip in bus, Tri-Rail ridership may stem from population changes
The decline in Palm Tran ridership is “consistent with regional transit trends tied to an overall shift in commuter patterns,” spokesperson Janessa Croce said.
Tri-Rail spokesperson Victor Garcia suggested train passenger counts dropped in part because people are leaving South Florida.
While more than 2,300 people moved to Palm Beach County in 2025, more than 4,500 people left Broward County while Miami-Dade County lost more than 18,000 people, the latest U.S. Census Bureau estimates show.
Palm Beach County residents have higher average incomes compared to the last times in recent memory when local gas prices broke $4 a gallon. Income for half of households in the county is about $85,000 or more, 2024 Census estimates show.
In 2022, when gas prices skyrocketed after Russia invaded neighboring Ukraine, Palm Beach County’s median household income stood at just below $77,000. In 2008, it was just under $53,000.
Commuters have also been moving away from fully fossil fuel-powered vehicles in recent years. Nearly 53,000 vehicles registered in Palm Beach County are gas-electric hybrids, and about 47,000 more are fully electric, the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles reported in April.
More workers countywide are also allowed these days to work from home following the COVID-19 pandemic. About 16% do so, 2024 Census estimates show, about triple the rate in 2019.
Palm Tran bus passes cost $2 one way.
One-way tickets on Tri-Rail, which runs along Interstate 95, cost $2.50 to $5 within Palm Beach County on weekdays, and $8.75 to Miami-Dade County. The train has stops in Mangonia Park, downtown West Palm Beach, Lake Worth Beach, Boynton Beach, Delray Beach and Boca Raton.
Brightline costs $16 to $26 within Palm Beach County on weekdays, but the company also sells South Florida commuter passes, 10- to 40-ride packages, amounting to less than $9 per ride at their cheapest.
More information about Palm Tran can be found online at palmtran.org. More information about Tri-Rail can be found online at tri-rail.com. More information about Brightline can be found online at gobrightline.com.
Chris Persaud is a Palm Beach Post staff reporter. Email news tips to cpersaud@pbpost.com.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Tri-Rail, bus ridership fell as gas prices soared past $4 per gallon
Reporting by Chris Persaud, Palm Beach Post / Palm Beach Post
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