Posted on Tue, Jun. 26, 2012

Thousands of people who poured into downtown Miami for the Heat parade got there by mass transit.

For Tri-Rail, the commuter train that runs from Palm Beach County to Miami-Dade, the passion to see the hometown sports heroes celebrate their championship meant a spike in ridership. According to the South Florida Regional Transportation Authority, 18,355 people rode Tri-Rail on parade day, the third highest ridership ever for the system.

Many trains ran at or near capacity, with 1,800 riders packed on one three-car set-up.

Tri-Rail’s highest ridership was in June 2011 for National Dump the Pump Day. The second highest figures came during the Miami Heat’s 2006 victory parade.