public transit

noun

variants US public transit or British public transport

: mass transit

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

—John Rosenthal

… 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

The city's public transit system, Greenlink, is providing a bus with air conditioning for evacuees to stay cool, and the mall will be closed for an undetermined amount of time, according to police. —Alexandra Koch, FOXNews.com, 13 June 2026

While crime on public transit is rare, a recent Charlotte Observer investigation finding violent incidents were more likely to occur on buses rather than light rails, and detailed attacks on bus drivers. —Dj Simmons, Charlotte Observer, 12 June 2026

That means the tourist-tax largesse can’t help pay for affordable housing projects or improvements to public transit, as some community leaders prefer, but instead must be spent on tourism marketing, expanding the convention center or improving sports and arts venues. —Stephen Hudak, The Orlando Sentinel, 12 June 2026

Landmark legislation that restructures the governing bodies of the CTA, Metra and Pace — and provides more than $1 billion in annual funding for public transit — took effect last week. —Talia Soglin, Chicago Tribune, 11 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1847, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for public transit

• paratransit