Organization awards SacRT with this high accolade for all of North America
The Sacramento Regional Transit District will receive the 2021 national award for Outstanding Public Transportation System of the Year, the American Public Transportation Association announced last week.
APTA gives out the award each year in three categories: one for systems with small ridership, one for medium ridership and one for large ridership. SacRT won the award in the medium category, making it the best transit system in North America with annual ridership between 4 million and 20 million.
“This prestigious and highly competitive award recognizes organizations in the public transportation industry across North America whose accomplishments and innovations have greatly advanced public transportation,” SacRT wrote in a news release Wednesday. “... To put the honor in perspective, winning the national Outstanding Transportation System of the Year award in the transit industry, is the equivalent of receiving the Oscar for best picture.”
To be eligible for the award, transit systems must be nominated and receive statements of support from local government officials and riders. SacRT received statements of support from U.S. Rep. Doris Matsui (D-Sacramento), California State Treasurer Fiona Ma, U.S. Rep. Ami Bera (D-Elk Grove) and others.
APTA then judged the nominated transit system in 12 categories, including Safety; Diversity, Inclusion and Equity; Customer Service; Sustainability and Community Relations.
In the news release, SacRT officials said the transportation system was specifically recognized for various initiatives implemented from 2018 to 2020 including lowering fares, achieving significant ridership growth, creating a fare-free student ridership program and pioneering the smaRT ride program.
“SacRT is thrilled to receive the highest industry honor from the American Public Transportation Association,” SacRT General Manager and CEO Henry Li said in the news release. “This award belongs to the nearly 1,300 SacRT employees who through hard work, dedication and teamwork, have transformed this agency to become the best system in the industry.”
Most of the accomplishments for which SacRT was recognized predated the COVID-19 pandemic, which significantly impacted SacRT and regional transit systems across the nation. When the pandemic hit in March 2020, SacRT lost 75% of its riders and was forced to cut bus and train systems down to minimal levels.
The system faced serious financial setbacks in 2020 and 2021 despite receiving multiple rounds of federal COVID-19 aid.
But this year’s APTA awards glossed over recent turmoil in the public transit industry, instead choosing to issue awards for the 2018-2020 period with minimal focus on the pandemic. The awards are typically given in consideration of a three-year period, so next year’s awards will more fully include the pandemic effects of 2020 and 2021.
SacRT will receive the award at the APTA’s annual conference in November 2021.