Public transportation demand in a border metropolitan economy

Empirical research for public transport demand has uncovered numerous interesting commonalities across metropolitan economies. This study examines the demand for municipal bus services over time in El Paso, Texas, USA. El Paso is one of the largest metropolitan economies in the USA located directly adjacent to an international boundary with another country. This study not only models the demand for municipal bus services as a function of traditional variables such as price, income and weather, but also includes regressors designed to measure the potential impacts of cross-border economic conditions on El Paso ridership. Results from a Linear Transfer Function (LTF) modelling approach indicate that rider volumes are affected by domestic as well as international economic conditions in this border metropolitan area. © 2013 Copyright Taylor and Francis Group, LLC