Public Transportation and Transit

Public transportation and transit are the shared passenger services that governments and public agencies run or fund, such as buses, subways, light rail, and commuter trains. Local and regional transit agencies operate most systems, with federal and state money supporting construction and service. Fares, taxes, and grants pay for operations.

People usually ask how transit is funded, who decides routes and fares, and how agencies are governed. They also ask how federal programs support local systems, how accessibility is handled, and why communities disagree about how much to invest in transit compared with roads and other ways of getting around.