DART ends free downtown shuttle due to declining ridership

By the numbers: DART's total ridership rose nearly 9% in FY2024, reaching around 3.5 million rides compared to the year prior.

• However, D-Line rides dropped during the same period by 11%, from 71,000 to 63,000.

Between the lines: The city of Des Moines had been subsidizing 50% of the route's costs, but opted to stop this fiscal year because of the declines, DART spokesperson Erin Hockman tells Axios.

• It costs $600,000 to operate.

What's next: DART has the budget to maintain its other routes through June 2026.

• In the meantime, the organization is reworking how it operates, following past funding shortfalls and worries about service cuts.
• DART is working on a new 10-year plan and expects to finalize it by December 2025.