Gainesville's mass transit has never been more massive.
The city's Regional Transit System set a record for bus riders in a single day Wednesday with 59,135 passengers.
The record tops the previous high of 58,716 set in September 2009.
"We're very excited about it," said RTS spokesman Chip Skinner. "Any time we set a record, we're extremely excited."
He attributed the record-setting day to the efforts of students and residents of Gainesville trying to save money in a tough economy.
There are 10 buses outfitted with the ability to collect data on passengers, he said, but the service did not know the total percentage of the riders who were UF students. They ride the RTS buses for free using their Gator 1 Cards.
If the trend continues, Skinner said, RTS may reach 9.3 million riders this year, which would set a new annual rider record. RTS is up 4 percent in riders from last year.
Skinner said with more riders, the federal government could increase funding for public transportation.
He said RTS has, per capita, the highest ridership of any bus service in Florida.
