Overview: Facts about the Greater Cleveland RTA

Overview: Facts about the Greater Cleveland RTA

CLEVELAND - The Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority (RTA) provides transportation services for 150,000-200,000 customers on a typical weekday, or about 45 million rides annually, through a variety of services. In 2016, RTA provided 18.1 million vehicle-miles of service on all modes -- HealthLine, bus, Paratransit, light rail, heavy rail, and vanpools.

  •  Local and Park-N-Ride Bus Services – 55 bus routes provide about 4,028 daily trips, with 406 full-size (40, 45 & 60-foot) buses serving 6,000 bus stops, including 1,100 bus shelters. Major Park-N-Ride lots in Euclid, Westlake, Strongsville and North Olmsted host rush-hour service. RTA also serves municipal Park-N-Ride lots in Bay Village and Brecksville, as well as transit centers in Parma, Fairview Park, Maple Heights and Cleveland State University.
  • Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) – The HealthLine on Euclid Avenue provides service and operational characteristics associated with rail, with a rubber-tired Rapid Transit Vehicle (RTVs). There are 24 RTVs, including 21 hybrid-electric.  Each is 63 feet long, serving nearly 20,000 daily customers at 36 stations along the Corridor. The HealthLine operates 24/7, with a rush-hour frequency of every 8 minutes. The HealthLine, which began in 2008, serves 10 percent of RTA's customers. In December 2014, RTA added a second BRT service, the Cleveland State Line, which connects the West Shore communities with Downtown, via Clifton Boulevard, with 15 articulated vehicles and 19 special bus stations branded for CSU. In its first year of operation, ridership grew more than 31 percent. In December 2017, the MetroHealth Line began serving the West 25th Street Corridor, and five facilities, including the Main Campus. It replaces the 51 family of routes -- the second-highest ridership route at RTA. Service is 24/7, with approximately 200 trips daily.
  • The Red Line, heavy-rail service with 40 train cars (each 75 feet long), serves 18 rail stations on 38 miles of one-way track from the Hopkins International Airport Station, through the Tower City Station, to the Louis Stokes Station at Windermere in East Cleveland. The Red Line operates 7 days a week, with a frequency of 7-15 minutes for 20 hours a day. It serves 12 percent of RTA customers. This service began in the 1950s, with a later extension to Hopkins International Airport in 1968. It was the first rail system in the Northern Hemisphere to connect downtown to an airport with Rapid Transit.
  • The Blue Line, Green Line and Waterfront Line, light-rail service with 34 cars (each 90 feet long). They serve 34 stations on 31 miles of one-way track, from the Eastern Suburbs to the Tower City Station. The initial phase of operation began in 1913. The Waterfront Line began operation in 1996, connecting the Tower City Station with the Flats East Bank, FirstEnergy Stadium -- home of the Cleveland Browns -- Great Lakes Science Center, Rock-and-Roll Hall of Fame, Burke Lakefront Airport, and the Municipal Parking Lot on the Lakefront. This line serves 8 percent of RTA customers.
  • Downtown Trolley service. To connect major Downtown venues with each other, and with the Tower City Station, the B-Line Downtown Trolley began weekday operation in 2006. Daily ridership has grown from 800 to more than 6,000.
  • Paratransit services. Designed specifically to meet the needs of the disabled customers who are unable to use regular RTA buses and trains, Paratransit provides door-to-door service, with 80 vehicles owned and operated by RTA, as well as an additional 80 vehicles operated by three private subcontractors. Users must pre-register and pre-qualify. Reservations are taken by phone, e-mail or on-line from 1-7 days in advance.