Metro riders turned out in droves in the spring to protest major service cuts, testifying at public hearings, filling out online surveys and signing petitions. Their voices helped eliminate those proposed cuts, boost taxpayer subsidies and pave the way for major fare increases in the pending budget.

But as the transit agency is poised to host a public hearing Wednesday evening on Metro’s $709 million plan to maintain the aging system as part of the same budget, the response has been far quieter.