Expanding Fare-Free Transportation as a Public Good

Why this investment?

Boston’s Black bus riders spend 64 more hours in transit every year than their white counterparts: a stark data point underscoring service inequities across the City’s bus system. Recognizing these disparities, Mayor Wu’s Green New Deal platform envisions reliable public transit as a fundamental right and fare-free transit as a step toward realizing that right, beginning with buses. Taking an equity-first approach, the City is focused on low-income “transit-critical” communities, primarily made up of Black and Brown residents who rely on public transit.

Former Boston Mayor Kim Janey launched the initial three-month fare free bus pilot on Route 28 in August 2021 with $500,000 in City funding, aiming to alleviate financial stress for low-income residents hard hit by the pandemic. Stacy Thompson, Executive Director of Livable Streets Alliance, says that the pilot was a response to community advocacy and also grew out of a groundswell of fare-free transit experiments in Lawrence, Worcester, and other regional communities.

Route 28 was selected because it is one of the system’s busiest lines providing critical transit services for residents living in some of the City’s most socially vulnerable areas. The evaluation of the pilot revealed its success: ridership increased by 38 percent, reaching pre-pandemic ridership long before other bus routes. At the same time, wait times decreased 20 percent and one in five riders saved at least $20 per month. 

Expanding the pilot to other bus routes serving the same population promised to multiply these positive impacts and build momentum toward free transit system-wide.  

What is this investment?

On March 1, 2022, Boston launched the expanded fare-free pilot on Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority (MBTA) bus routes 23, 28, and 29. Riders pay no fares on these three busy bus lines, and they can board freely using any door. The program also extends to RIDE paratransit users, who are able to ride paratransit for free as long as their trips start and end within ¾ mile of the fare-free routes. 

Through the pilot, the City hopes to achieve multiple goals. It aims to increase transit equity by directly benefiting transit-critical residents and reduce transportation costs for low-income riders. It also seeks to improve transit quality and rider experience by streamlining operations, shortening dwell times, and minimizing fare disputes. By removing financial barriers, riders can disembark for quick errands or take additional trips without worrying about additional costs, increasing mobility and quality of life. Through the free fares and operational improvements, the pilot seeks to increase ridership. Finally, the pilot aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and improve air quality.

The pilot was designed by Boston’s Streets Cabinet and is being implemented by the MBTA, which runs Boston’s bus system. Establishing the pilot involved working out a formula by which the City would reimburse the MBTA for the cost of eliminating the fares.

Originally slated to expire in two years, in February 2024, Mayor Wu announced that the pilot was funded to continue for two additional years.

Centering equity in the program

The fare-free pilot centered equity from its inception by focusing on bus lines that provide essential transportation services in historically underserved communities of color. Thompson says that the 28 is an iconic bus line. “If we are trying to help people, this is the bus line to do it on.” 

The program is benefiting the transit-critical residents it intends to serve, including making the buses more accessible to youth, unhoused people, and older adults. Many riders are spending less on transportation because of the pilot, and using the cost savings to pay for other household expenses or save for the future. Surveys reveal that riders are pleased with the fare elimination program, but also need more frequent and reliable service.

Gupta explains that the City wants to expand free transit - ideally making the entire bus system free - but also recognizes fare elimination is just one element of a comprehensive transportation solution. The key limitation of the pilot is that about half of riders transfer to other bus lines or to the subway to complete some or all of their trips, and are either paying for those trips individually or buying weekly or monthly system passes. While the pilot’s operational efficiencies may save them time and improve their overall experience, it does not save them any money. To address this limitation, the City is working to expand fare subsidies for low-income riders to reduce their overall transportation costs, although Gupta notes this is a longer-term effort.

Thompson agrees that free buses and transit subsidies “go hand in hand,” and underscores that to achieve racial equity in transit there needs to be more transportation services overall in BIPOC communities, as well as greater transit accessibility for people with disabilities.

Outcomes to date

Since the pilot began, the three bus lines have provided more than 12 million free trips, saving riders more than $6 million. For riders that don’t transfer to other routes or buy bus passes, the pilot is saving them $35 per month on average. One focus group participant calculated they’d saved $600 to $700 dollars because of the free daily route. Another described how their mother now gives the cash that used to go into the fare box to their younger siblings to pay for breakfast or snacks at school. Over the first year of the pilot, ridership in the fare-free zone increased 35 percent, compared to a 15 percent increase across the MBTA system. The mid-term evaluation found that the pilot is drawing new riders to the system and supporting trips to work, school, and appointments as well as nonessential trips, with riders describing the ability to travel with more family members and take increased visits to family and friends. The City will publish a full evaluation report after the second year of the pilot closes in March 2024.

Toward transformative change

Boston's ARPA-supported fare-free experiment is at the forefront of a national movement around free transit as essential public infrastructure. The City hopes the pilot’s evaluation results will support the program’s expansion. In addition to wanting to make the three bus lines free indefinitely, Boston Streets Cabinet is exploring partnerships with Cambridge and Chelsea to launch free routes along bus lines that cross municipal borders. Gupta says that the MBTA has become more supportive over time, and hopes that the positive results in Boston and elsewhere in Massachusetts will lead to the state shouldering some of the financial burden as well.