Before the COVID-19 pandemic, Sun Metro officials accounted for 12 million riders on public transit annually. Since, the city’s public transportation service has worked to recover the amount of unique rides given to El Pasoans each year.
“After COVID, we went down from about 12 million riders a year to about five million riders a year. And, now we’re back up to about seven million riders a year. Just this last year, we went up $1 million dollars. So, if a fare is $1.50 and we went up $1 million dollars, that affects the budget a lot," Anthony DeKeyzer Sun Metro’s director said.
DeKeyzer said his agency is preparing to implement a new initiative called Sun Metro Rising in 2026. The proposal will overhaul the public transportation system’s routes and services. Under the plan, 48 of Sun Metro’s 52 routes will see major changes except for four Brio lines that may see changes in start and end times.
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This program originally aired on July 16, 2025