public transit

noun

variants US public transit or British public transport

: mass transit

… public transit remains the smartest way to navigate hectic downtowns.

—National Geographer Traveler

… jobs restoring our water sewage systems, our highways and bridges, our public transit system and our crumbling schools, ports and public buildings.

—Ralph Nader

Examples of public transit in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Commuters on their way to work and university students ride alongside the approximately 52,000 public school students in Philadelphia who use public transit to get to school. —Kelly Phillips Erb, Forbes.com, 4 Sep. 2025

Progressives look longingly at European social democracies, where national health insurance and robust public transit were won years ago. —David Weigel, semafor.com, 3 Sep. 2025

Multiple City Council members called for action to improve safety on public transit in the wake of the killing. —Mary Ramsey, Charlotte Observer, 3 Sep. 2025

The Detroit Department of Transportation began installing 21 bus platforms along East Jefferson as part of a pilot program to improve public transit in the city. —Aurora Sousanis, Freep.com, 29 Aug. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1847, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for public transit

• paratransit