In recent months, officials in the Oklahoma City metro have begun touting commuter rail as the wave of the future, calling for construction of a $1.8 billion commuter rail system that will cover 39 miles from Edmond to Oklahoma City to Norman.

But with similar rail systems nationwide, more and more people are making commuter rail a thing of the past, as national data indicate fewer people are riding many of those systems.

In a May 2025 report, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) examined the nation’s 31 commuter rail systems and found ridership had not rebounded to pre-COVID levels at many of them.

“Roughly 5 years after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic—and almost 2 years since the federal public health emergency ended—transit agencies report that the pandemic has significantly affected how individuals use and prioritize public transit in their daily activities,” the GAO report stated.

The GAO report found that “total ridership for all 31 systems from July through December 2024 remained about 31 percent below pre-pandemic levels (July through December 2019).”

While ridership had recovered, or nearly recovered, at six commuter rail systems, the GAO found that “ridership at 17 systems remained 16 to 46 percent below pre-pandemic levels” while ridership at eight other systems “was 50 percent or more below pre-pandemic levels.”

That data contrasts sharply with the rhetoric of some Oklahoma City metro officials when discussing the proposed new commuter rail system in Oklahoma.

In his August “State of the City” speech, Oklahoma City Mayor David Holt proclaimed that a 39-mile commuter rail system linking Edmond, Oklahoma City, and Norman “will be a game-changing new amenity for the community that will change the way we commute to work” or travel to certain tourism destinations.

But the GAO found many commuter rail systems similar to the proposed Oklahoma City rail line are facing significant financial strain that could lead to ever-greater taxpayer bailouts, including tax increases.

Even as ridership and associated fare revenue is declining at rail systems nationwide, the GAO report noted that the “vast majority of systems also reported increased operating costs in fiscal year 2023 compared to 2019, with a 28 percent increase in nominal operating costs across all systems.”

“Our survey found that the majority of commuter rail systems (26 of 31) reported lower fares and agency-generated revenue (fare revenue) in FY 2023 compared to FY 2019,” the GAO report stated. “Across all commuter rail systems, nominal fare revenues decreased 31 percent from FY 2019 to FY 2023.”

However, the report noted that rail systems typically struggle to reduce overhead costs and keep expenses in line with revenue, noting that “commuter rail has high costs compared to other transit modes like bus service, and it is not as easy to recoup costs by scaling down rail service.”

The GAO report’s conclusions are similar to the findings of a February 2026 report issued by DWU Consulting, which warned that “13 of 15 largest U.S. transit agencies by operating budget confront structural deficits—operating costs rising faster than farebox revenue and local funding.”

The DWU report noted that “the cumulative funding gap across major agencies could reach roughly $5–10 billion by 2027 if no new federal, state, or local funding is enacted.”

In the GAO report, examiners interviewed officials at 10 commuter rail systems nationwide and found several have adopted new strategies to boost ridership, including “offering free fares and flexible passes for certain passengers (e.g., youth passes).”

However, while free fares may boost ridership, that strategy does not reduce the size and scope of financial shortfalls.

Oklahoma City officials have taken a similar approach to boosting ridership on the OKC Streetcar rail service, the city’s current downtown rail system, which no longer requires any payment from passengers.

The OKC Streetcar rail service struggled to attract riders despite previously charging only minimal fees. Adults were previously charged $1 for a single ride and $3 for a 24-hour pass, while seniors 65 and older, Medicare cardholders, and riders with qualifying disabilities paid just 50 cents per ride.

In an Aug. 7 post on social media, Holt shrugged off associated concerns about the OKC Streetcar system’s financial stability, writing, “In government, we don’t measure the success of our services by the profit they turn, because they never have and they never will.”