Bus ridership strong in Rockford

ROCKFORD, Ill. — More people have been riding buses in Rockford than ever.

Rockford Mass Transit District says ridership was up for the fourth-straight fiscal year. It's reached among the highest levels in nearly two decades.

The agency say it served around 1.8 million riders in the past fiscal year. The fiscal year runs from July through June. That ridership figure is a nearly 6 percent increase over the previous year. And it's the busiest year for the service since 1991.

High fuel prices in recent years have led more people to use Rockford buses. A fare increase in May did cut into ridership for several weeks. But it later rebounded.

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