MBTA Bus

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.

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.

Fleet

Active fleet

This is the current bus roster for the MBTA as of October 27, 2016, including two groups of buses where delivery is ongoing. All buses are 102 inches (260 cm) wide; most are standard-length 40-foot (12 m) length while some are 60-foot (18 m) articulated buses.^[1][3]

Order Year	Manufacturer	Model	Picture	Fleet	Qty.	Active	Propulsion	Length (ft.)	Notes
1994	TMC	RTS T80206		0001-0138	138	14	Diesel	40	All units expected to be retired by 2018
1995	NovaBus	RTS T80206		0139-0400	262	23	Diesel	40	All units expected to be retired by 2018
2003-2004	NABI	40-LFW		2001-2299	299	252	CNG	40	46 buses have retired as of November 2016; buses will continue to be retired as more XN40 and XDE40 buses come into service, with the last units retired by mid 2017
2003-2004	Neoplan USA	AN460LF		1001-1044	44	26	CNG	60	#1001-1020 & #1030 wrapped for Silver Line (SL4 & SL5) 16 buses have retired as of November 2016, buses will continue to be retired as new XDE60 buses come into service, with all units retired by early 2017
2004	Neoplan USA	AN440LF		4101-4128	28	28	Electric trolleybus	40	Buses are equipped with left-hand doors for operating into the Harvard Bus Tunnel
2004-2005	Neoplan USA	AN440LF		0401-0593	193	192	Diesel	40	All buses have been overhauled by Midwest
2004-2005	Neoplan USA	AN460LF		1101-1132	32	32	Dual mode	60	In Silver Line (SL1 and SL2) service #1125-1132 owned by Massport Buses are being overhauled by Maine Military Authority, with completion estimated by end of 2016. 11 buses have re-entered service as of October 2016
2006-2007	NFI	D40LF		0600-0754	155	155	Diesel	40
2008	NFI	D40LF		0755-0909	155	155	Diesel	40	MBTA has requested bids, due in November 2016, to overhaul this fleet
2010	NFI	DE60LFR		1200-1224	25	25	Hybrid	60	#1222-1224 wrapped for Silver Line routes SL4 and SL5
2014-2015	NFI	XDE40		1400-1459	60	60	Hybrid	40
2016-2017	NFI	XN40		1600-1774	175	21	CNG	40	Delivery began in October 2016 and will last until July 2017
2016-2017	NFI	XDE40		1775-1924	150	22	Hybrid	40	Delivery began in October 2016 and will last until July 2017
2016-2017	NFI	XDE60		1250-1293	44	7	Hybrid	60	Delivery began in November 2016 and will last until mid-summer 2017
2016	ElDorado National	Axess BRT Fuel Cell		5002	1	1	Hydrogen Fuel Cell	40	Bus is in revenue service on Charlestown routes. To be tested for 6 months between Late 2016-Mid 2017 Cannot operate in the Harvard Bus Tunnel and routes with low bridge clearances.

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.^[1][4]

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 CNG-powered Neoplan AN460LF fleet. The contract will include an option for an additional hybrid bus with extended range electric-only operation for Silver Line Waterfront use. If tested successfully, an additional option for 45 hybrid buses with extended range electric operation would be exercised to replace the dual-mode AN460LF fleet.^[1][5]

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.^[1][6]

In late 2016, the MBTA will place a prototype 40-foot hydrogen fuel cell bus provided by the FTA into service.^[1][7]

Facilities

MBTA Bus routes grouped by the facility they operate from at peak hours

Albany   Arborway   Cabot   Charlestown   Fellsway   Lynn

North Cambridge   Quincy   Somerville   Southampton   Private carriers

MBTA buses are operated out of the facilities listed below.^[1]

Notes:

• * = Route during evenings & weekends
• ** = Route during Sundays
• ***=Route 73 will resume running out of North Cambridge on Weekdays and Saturdays ONLY, starting December 31, 2016. Sunday service will be run out of Charlestown/Bennett Yard
• † = Route during evenings
• Routes 28, SL4, and SL5 are operated out of Cabot in the event of a winter storm. Route 39 are operated out of Arborway and/or Cabot in the event of a winter storm.

Private buses

A Blue Hill Bus Lines vehicle on the Canton - Mattapan route, now the #716 route, in 1967

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. ^[8]

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).^[9]

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.^[9] 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.^[9] 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.

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to MBTA Bus Operations.

• MBTA - Bus Schedules and Maps
• MBTA Bus Route Performance Indicators

Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority
Subway lines (List of stations)	Heavy rail      Blue      Orange      Red Light rail      Green "B" Branch "C" Branch "D" Branch "E" Branch      Ashmont–Mattapan Former lines      Arborway Line      Atlantic Avenue Elevated      Causeway Street Elevated      Charlestown Elevated      Green Line "A" Branch      Washington Street Elevated
Commuter Rail lines (List of stations)	North Station lines Fitchburg Haverhill (Wildcat Branch) Lowell Newburyport/Rockport South Station lines Fairmount Framingham/Worcester Franklin Greenbush Needham Old Colony (Kingston/Plymouth Middleborough/Lakeville      CapeFLYER) Providence/Stoughton Former lines Central Mass Branch Dedham Branch Lexington Branch Millis Branch Woburn Branch
Bus routes (List of routes)	Silver Line Crosstown routes Key routes Trackless trolleys Routes East Boston, Chelsea, Revere Melrose, Reading, Stoneham, Wakefield South Boston
Other services	Boat The Ride
Component parts of system lines	Boylston Street Subway      Haymarket North Extension      Lechmere Viaduct      Tremont Street Subway
Capital projects	Under construction      Blue Hill Avenue station      Boston Landing station           Forest Hills modifications      Green Line Extension      Haverhill Line upgrades           Silver Line Gateway / Chelsea station      South Coast Rail In planning / proposed      Buzzards Bay extension      Foxboro service      Hynes Convention Center renovation      Kingston R.I. extension      Nashua extension      Route 16 extension      Wollaston renovation Formerly proposed      Arborway Line restoration      Indigo Line (Fairmount Grand Junction Track 61)      Lexington extension      Lynn extension      North–South Rail Link      Plaistow extension      Reading extension           Red Line—Blue Line Connector Urban Ring Project
History	Predecessor companies Boston Elevated Railway Streetcar lines Boston and Maine Railroad Conrail New York Central Railroad New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad Penn Central Eastern Massachusetts Street Railway Middlesex and Boston Street Railway Newton and Boston Street Railway Accidents and incidents      1990 Back Bay      2008 Waban/Woodland
Other	Accessibility Arts on the Line Bicycling CharlieCard Grand Junction Railroad "Charlie on the M.T.A." Nomenclature Police                Winter Street Concourse Yards and maintenance facilities