MBTA Bus

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority operates 170 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.

MBTA Bus
A New Flyer XDE40 bus at Dudley Station in 2017
ParentMassachusetts Bay Transportation Authority
Founded1964 (predecessors date to 1856)
LocaleGreater Boston
Service areaBoston and immediate suburbs
Service typeLocal, limited stop, express, and Silver Line BRT
Routes170[1]
Fleet1109 (Active) [1]
Daily ridership387,815 (2013)[2]
Fuel typeDiesel, CNG, electric trolleybus, diesel-electric hybrid
OperatorMBTA; private operators
Websitembta.com

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 buses on the surface. Four routes based out of the Harvard Bus Tunnel run with trolleybuses in Cambridge, Massachusetts and 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 LED exterior headsigns displaying route and destination, with automated audio/visual stop announcements for passengers.

After taking over operations in August 1964 from the former Metropolitan Transit Authority, the MBTA began rebranding many elements of Boston's public transportation network. After being found unsuitable in 1965 for what is now the Orange Line because it did not show up well on maps, yellow was chosen for the color of bus operations on January 8, 1972.[3][4]

The Boston Elevated Railway and MTA operated overnight Owl service until 1960. From September 2001 to June 2005, the MBTA operated bus service on 17 routes (7 normal bus routes and 10 routes replicating subway lines) until 2:30am on Friday and Saturday nights. Similar service on the key routes was operated from March 2013 to March 2014.[5] In 2017, the MBTA Board considered a proposal to run all-night service on several routes with pulsed connections at a central hub.[6]

Fleet

Active fleet

This is the current bus roster for the MBTA as of June 2020. All buses are 102 inches (260 cm) wide; most buses are 40-foot (12 m) length, while 102 are 60-foot (18 m) articulated buses.[1]

Order YearManufacturerModelPictureFleetQty.ActivePropulsionLength (ft.)Notes
2004 Neoplan USA AN440LF 4101–4128 28 28 Electric trolleybus 40
  • Equipped with left-hand doors for operating into the Harvard Bus Tunnel
2004–2005 Neoplan USA AN440LF 0401–0593 192 130 Diesel 40
  • Overhauled by Midwest Bus from 2013–2015
  • To be replaced by 2019-2020 NFI XDE40 buses
2004–2005 Neoplan USA DMA-460LF 1101–1132 32 32 Dual mode 60
  • Used for Silver Line Waterfront (SL1, SL2, and SL3) service
  • 1125–1132 owned by Massport
  • Overhauled by Maine Military Authority from 2015–2018
2006–2007 NFI D40LF 0600–0754 155 153 Diesel 40
2008 NFI D40LF 0756–0910 155 155 Diesel 40
  • Undergoing overhaul, to be complete in early 2020.[1]
  • 0755 has been renumbered 0910. [1]
2010 NFI DE60LFR 1200–1224 25 25 Hybrid 60
  • Buses to be overhauled by Northeast Bus.[1]
  • 1222–1224 used for Silver Line (Washington Street) routes
2014–2015 NFI XDE40 1400–1459 60 60 Hybrid 40
2016–2017 NFI XN40 1600–1774 175 175 CNG 40
2016–2017 NFI XDE40 1775–1924 &
3000–3005		 156 156 Hybrid 40
  • 3000–3005 assigned to privately operated routes 712 and 713[1]
2016–2017 NFI XDE60 1250–1293 44 44 Hybrid 60
  • 1273–1293 used for Silver Line Washington Street routes
2018 NFI XDE60 1294 1 1 Hybrid 60
  • Part of an option to order up to 45 additional hybrid buses with extended-range electric operation to replace the current dual-mode fleet, which would not require a change of power between trackless trolley and diesel at Silver Line Way.[7]
2019 NFI XE60 1295–1299 5 5 Battery-electric 60
  • Funded by 2015 FTA grant.[8] Will be used for two years for testing battery-electric technology in Silver Line service.[9]
2019–2020 NFI XDE40 1925–2118 194 141 Hybrid 40
  • Delivery in-progress; to last until September 2020
  • Part of an option order from the 2016–2017 XDE40 fleet contract.
  • Will replace the entire AN440LF diesel fleet

Future

Sixty additional XDE40 buses, an option order from a Virginia contract, will be delivered from June to November 2020.[1]

Potential future orders include the 45-bus option order for extended-battery range hybrid buses (of which #1294 is a test bus). The MBTA may begin a phased 500-bus order in 2020, with delivery from 2021–2025. Under that plan, the agency would establish a continuous procurement process with 100 new buses per year, and buses retired after 12 years.[1]

Facilities
MBTA Bus routes grouped by the facility they operate from at peak hours (2016).

MBTA buses are operated out of nine facilities.[1] The MBTA plans to replace Quincy Garage with a larger facility near Quincy Adams station.[10]

Name Address Routes Times of Operation
Albany Street 421 Albany Street, Boston 4, 55, 57, 59, 60, 65, 170, 501, 502, 503, 504, 505, 553, 554, 556, 558, CT2, CT3 Weekday rush hours and middays
Arborway 3600 Washington Street, Jamaica Plain 14, 21, 24, 26, 27, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 34E, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39 (evenings), 40, 41, 42, 50, 51, 52 Full-time
Cabot 275 Dorchester Avenue, South Boston 1, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 22, 23, 43, 44, 45, 47, 66, 171
Also serves routes 55, 57, 59, 65, 504, and 553 when Albany Street is closed		 Full-time
Charlestown / Bennett (Somerville) 21 Arlington Avenue, Charlestown 61, 62, 64, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 79, 80, 83, 84, 85, 86, 87, 88, 89, 91, 92, 93, 101, 104, 109, 110, 111, 112, 325, 326, 350, 351, 352
Also serves routes 90, 94, 95, 96, 97, 99, 100, 105, 106, 108, 132, 134, 136, 137, 411, and 430 when Fellsway Garage is closed, and routes 71 and 73 on Sundays		 Full-time
Fellsway 465 Salem Street, Medford 90, 94, 95, 96, 97, 99, 100, 105, 106, 108, 131, 132, 134, 136, 137, 354, 411, 430 Weekday rush hours and middays
Lynn 985 Western Avenue, Lynn 114, 116, 117, 119, 120, 121, 424, 426, 428, 429, 434, 435, 436, 439, 441, 442, 450, 451, 455, 456, 465 Full-time
North Cambridge 2375 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge 71, 73, 77A Weekdays and Saturdays
Quincy 954 Hancock Street, Quincy 201, 202, 210, 211, 212, 214, 215, 216, 217, 220, 221, 222, 225, 226, 230, 236, 238, 240, 245 Full-time
Southampton 230 Southampton Street, Boston 28, 39, Silver Line Full-time

Private buses
A Blue Hill Bus Lines vehicle on the Canton - Mattapan route, now the #716 route, in 1967
See also: List of MBTA bus routes § Privately operated routes

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. [11]

Five routes – the 710, 712/713, 714, and 716 – are numbered like other MBTA buses. 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).[5] The 712 and 713 use MBTA-provided buses and accept Charliecards; the other routes do not.

Four suburban municipalities contract with outside operators for local circulator routes, most with partial MBTA subsidy. Bedford and Beverly run single routes, Burlington runs five routes, and Lexington runs six.[5] 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.[5] Those 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.

References
  1. "MBTA Vehicle Inventory". NETransit. Retrieved November 14, 2019.
  2. "Ridership and Service Statistics" (PDF) (14th ed.). Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. 2014.
  3. Tran, Andrew Ba (June 2012). "MBTA Orange Line's 111th anniversary". Boston Globe. p. 11. Archived from the original on July 21, 2017.
  4. A Chronicle of the Boston Transit System. Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. 1981. p. 8 – via Internet Archive.
  5. Belcher, Jonathan. "Changes to Transit Service in the MBTA district" (PDF). NETransit.
  6. Vaccaro, Adam (August 1, 2017). "MBTA may test overnight buses, Foxborough commuter rail". Boston Globe.
  7. "Baker-Polito Administration, State and Transportation Officials Celebrate the MBTA's First Extended-range Hybrid Bus in the MBTA Silver Line Fleet" (Press release). Massachusetts Department of Transportation. September 26, 2018.
  8. "Low or No Emission Vehicle Deployment Program Project Selections". Federal Transit Administration. 5 February 2015. Retrieved 2 July 2015.
  9. "First-Zero-emission-Battery-electric-Buses-Join-the-MBTA-Silver-Line-Fleet" (Press release). Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. July 31, 2019.
  10. "MBTA Bus Facility Modernization Program: New Quincy Maintenance Facility" (PDF). Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. January 29, 2020.
  11. "Private Bus". Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
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