Metro ridership tends to fluctuate each year, but the numbers we hear usually don’t zoom in on how use varies from station to station. This interactive graph lets you view and compare how much use each station has seen since Metro’s inception.

To view multiple stations or lines simultaneously, just hold down your control button while clicking on the places you want to compare. Each station’s ridership, which is its average number of boardings per weekday, then shows up as a series on the graph.

There are plenty of fascinating trends to uncover here. For example, note how Pentagon ridership reached its highest level just before the resolution of the Cold War, or how Stadium-Armory exploded with riders during the Nationals’ brief stint at RFK.

What do you notice in these graphs?

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Tagged: metro, ridership, transit, whichwmata

Steve Bronder is a graduate student at Columbia University of New York. His interests include data visualization, econometrics, and transportation.

John Ricco, a public policy analyst by trade, is interested in the economics of urbanism and transportation. He recently moved away from DC and now lives in Philadelphia.