WASHINGTON (AP) - Metro says train ridership was nearly 5 percent below the agency's expectations in the first quarter of the fiscal year.

The Washington Examiner (http://bit.ly/RWelN8) reports that track work and service changes appear to be pushing riders to other modes of transportation. That's according to a Metro report obtained by the paper.

Metro has also said publicly that rate hikes that took effect in July and a reduction in federal transit benefits have also resulted in fewer riders.

Average weekday ridership dropped 2.5 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier. Weekend ridership dropped even more, falling by 6.4 percent on Saturdays and 5.7 percent on Sundays. Metro typically does track work on weekends when ridership is already down.