Transit ridership in Owen Sound declined slightly last year, but overall revenue increased.
That’s according to the city’s annual public transit report, which will be shared with the operations committee during its meeting Thursday.
Just over 200,000 trips were taken on Owen Sound transit buses in 2025, a slight decline of two per cent from the prior year.
“Ridership remained stable throughout most of the year, with the largest variance in February 2025 due to winter weather delays and temporary operational challenges stemming from reduced fleet availability,” a city staff report explains.
Total revenue from the city’s transit system increased by about eight per cent last year, to $412,000.
More people were using transit passes, instead of paying fares each ride. Owen Sound introduced several new transit pass options last year for riders. A day pass, 10-ride pass and a semester pass for students were among them.
“In 2025, fare revenue declined while pass revenue increased significantly,” the report to the operations committee says. “This reflects a shift toward pass products and other fare options that provide greater flexibility and value for riders.”
In all, it cost the municipality about $1.1-million to operate the public transit system in 2025.
Guelph Owen Sound Transit — the GOST bus — saw its ridership increase slightly last year (2.6 per cent). Nearly 13,000 riders used the daily Guelph to Owen Sound public transit service in 2025.