Metro ridership up 5 percent in February

In February, Cincinnati Metro saw a 5 percent increase in ridership over February 2010, a boost the public transit service attributes to rising gas prices.

Metro provided about 1.2 million rides in February, an increase of nearly 58,000 over February 2010. Its January 2011 ridership numbers were also higher and above its projections.

"We believe Metro's ridership increase is a response to the high gas prices," said Metro CEO Terry Garcia Crews in a prepared release. "As commuters realize how much they can save by choosing public transportation, Metro expects ridership to increase even more."

Metro, which provides more than 17 million rides per year, offers express commuter routes and operates 21 park-and-ride locations in Greater Cincinnati. It's estimated that approximately 20 percent of Downtown Cincinnati's daily workforce uses the service.

To help commuters learn how much they can save by using public transportation, Metro has integrated a savings calculator into its website.

In Kentucky, the Transit Authority of Northern Kentucky (TANK) bus service reported nearly 290,000 riders for February 2011, an increase of 10.3 percent over its February 2010 numbers.