Locale Greater Boston Website mbta.com Fleet 1,055 | Daily ridership 387,815 (2013) Date founded 1964 Routes 177 | |
 | ||
Parent Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority Service area Boston and immediate suburbs Service type Local, limited stop, express, and Silver Line BRT Operator Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority Fuel types Diesel fuel, Compressed natural gas, Trolleybus, Diesel-electric transmission | ||
The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority operates 177 bus routes (list of routes) in the Greater Boston area, many of which were formerly part of a large streetcar system. Some routes are for local transport within the city; others bring passengers from surrounding areas to stops on the MBTA Commuter Rail or subway lines. The MBTA has a policy objective to provide transit service within walking distance (defined as 0.25 miles (0.40 km)) for all residents living in areas with population densities greater than 5,000 inhabitants per square mile (1,900/km2) within the MBTA's service district. Much of this service is provided by bus.
Contents
The MBTA operates a four-route bus rapid transit service branded as the Silver Line, as well as three crosstown routes that were intended to become the first part of the now-suspended Urban Ring project. Fifteen routes designed as key routes run with higher frequency at all times, including extended service hours on Friday and Saturday nights over some of these routes.
Most MBTA Bus service is served by diesel, compressed natural gas, and diesel-electric hybrid buses. Silver Line routes running in the Waterfront Tunnel use dual-mode buses that operate as trolleybuses in the tunnel and as diesel-electric hybrid buses on the surface. Four routes based out of the Harvard Bus Tunnel run with trolleybuses in Cambridge, Massachusetts and also serve several surrounding suburbs.
All buses and routes are wheelchair-accessible (see MBTA accessibility); most of the MBTA's bus fleet consists of low-floor buses with wheelchair ramps, while older high-floor buses have lifts. All buses have amber (orange) colored LED exterior headsigns displaying route and destination, with automated audio/visual stop announcements for passengers.
Brand new mbta bus
Active fleet
This is the current bus roster for the MBTA as of March 2017, including three groups of buses where delivery is ongoing. All buses are 102 inches (260 cm) wide; most buses are 40-foot (12 m) length while 91 of the total MBTA bus fleet are 60-foot (18 m) articulated buses.
Future
On June 29, 2015, the MassDOT board approved the purchase of 325 new 40-foot buses (175 CNG-powered and 150 hybrid) from New Flyer, with options for an additional 200 hybrid buses and 200 diesel buses. The 325 buses, costing a total of $222.2 million, will be delivered in 2016 and 2017 following the acceptance of a production test model. They will replace the remaining C40LF and 40-LFW fleets. Six additional hybrid buses will be used for privately operated routes 712 and 713 when a new contract begins on July 1, 2017.
On October 5, 2015, the MBTA Fiscal Control Board approved the purchase of 44 new 60-foot articulated hybrid buses from New Flyer to replace the now-retired CNG-powered Neoplan AN460LF fleet. The contract will include an option for an additional hybrid bus with extended-range electric operation for Silver Line Waterfront use. If tested successfully, an additional option for up to 45 hybrid buses with extended-range electric operation would be exercised to replace the dual-mode AN460LF fleet.
In February 2015, the MBTA was awarded a $4.14 million FTA grant to purchase five 60-foot articulated battery electric buses from New Flyer.
In late 2016, the MBTA will place a prototype 40-foot hydrogen fuel cell bus provided by the FTA into service.
Facilities
MBTA buses are operated out of the facilities listed below.
Notes:
Private buses
Most local bus routes in Massachusetts outside the immediate MBTA operating area are operated by the state's other regional transit authorities (RTAs). However, some routes that connect with MBTA bus or subway service are operated by outside private contractors with partial subsidy by the MBTA.
Five routes – the 710, 712/713, 714, and 716 – are numbered like other MBTA buses; their operators accept MBTA passes on CharlieTickets, but do not have CharlieCard readers. The five routes are primarily commuter routes which connect with other MBTA services at their inbound terminals. They were taken over from various private operators (Hudson Bus Lines for the 710 and 716, Rapid Transit Inc. for the 712/713, and Nantasket Transportation for the 714).
Five suburban municipalities contract with outside operators for local circulator routes, most with partial MBTA subsidy. Bedford, Beverly, and Dedham run single routes; Burlington runs five routes; and Lexington runs six. Most are run by private operators, except for the Beverly Shuttle, which is part of the Cape Ann Transportation Authority system. Additionally, a nonprofit shuttle is run in Boston's Mission Hill neighborhood. Those 15 routes appear on MBTA system maps and connect with MBTA services at designated transfer points, but are numbered separately and do not accept MBTA passes.