These North American cities have the best public transit systems

New York City commute subway

Global consultancy firm Arcadis put together its first-ever Sustainable Cities Mobility Index so people can evaluate how their homes' public transit system compares to ones in other cities.

Arcadis evaluated three factors to create the ranking: people, profit, and planet. These factors allow the firm to analyze things like hours of operation, transportation coverage, reliability, efforts to lower emissions and congestion, and average time spent commuting.

Arcadis said North American cities rank low on the global index because so many cities are designed to support the personal vehicle over public transit. Despite their overall low score, some North American cities still reign supreme over others.

Scroll down to see Arcadis' ranking of public transit systems in North America:

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15. Seattle

Seattle earned high marks for its green energy initiatives and bike infrastructure. It didn't fare as well on the "profit" category, particularly when it came to public finance and the efficiency of its networks.

14. New Orleans

Arcadis says New Orleans clinched the 14th spot because of its efforts to revitalize public transit following Hurricane Katrina. New Orleans now has nine transit lines that offer 24 hours of service. The city also launched an online ride-share network called GeauxRide for people who live in areas that don't have easy access to public transit.

13. Los Angeles

Los Angeles is a surprising addition considering its known as a city for cars. The city consistently has the worst congestion of all the cities in the US.

Arcadis commended its projects like its Active Transportation Rail-to-River Corridor that will turn 1.9 miles of underutilized rail into a boulevard for bikers and pedestrians. LA also received higher marks because it has 1,300 charging stations for electric vehicles.

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