Daily passenger numbers on Macao’s Light Rapid Transit (LRT) have decreased for the third month running, hitting an average of just 11,600 in June, according to data supplied by the train operator.
That’s 200 fewer passengers on average each day than in May, 600 fewer than in April, and down from a yearly high of 16,700 in February.
At the LRT’s opening in December 2021, when rides were free, a daily average of 33,000 was recorded, and 16,000 in the month after, when passengers were still able to ride without paying. An average of 10,000 passengers per day was not exceeded again until December 2023, after the much-anticipated Taipa-Barra extension opened.
[See more: What’s next for Macao’s LRT?]
More recent numbers suggest that commuters have not sustained their initial enthusiasm for the LRT’s latest extension, which runs from Barra to Taipa’s Ocean Station.
Interest may increase with the addition of more lines. The Seac Pai Van Line started trial operations at the end of March and the Hengqin Line is scheduled to open later this year.
The 7.7-kilometre East Line, meanwhile, is currently under construction and set to be completed in 2028. It will transport passengers all the way from the Border Gate, in the north of the city, to Taipa. A West Line, running from Barra to the Border Gate, is also being considered by the government.
