TransitMatters Reveals The MBTA's Slowest And Most Bunched Buses

BOSTON, April 11, 2024 — The NextGen Bus team at TransitMatters is excited to announce the release of our first Pokey/Schleppie Awards report identifying and analyzing the top 10 slowest (pokey) and top 10 most bunched (schleppie) buses in the MBTA network. Inspired by the original Pokey/Schleppie report from NYPIRG’s Straphangers Campaign, this report identifies the most unreliable routes and suggests bus priority infrastructure implementations, operations modernization, and policy and planning changes to create a better bus network for riders. These proposals include the adoption of more bus lanes (including center-running bus lanes), Transit Signal Priority (TSP),  headway management, all-door boarding, automated enforcement, and enhanced circulation planning. In conjunction, these measures can reduce bus bunching, increase speed, and improve rider experience while making the bus a dignified transit option.

TransitMatters recognizes the role other stakeholders play in this process, including various municipalities, the MBTA, community organizations, and in some cases MassDOT, DCR, and elected officials. These stakeholders have begun to lead efforts that prioritize buses, but additional collaboration, cooperation, and coordination are needed between them to see impactful results. Furthermore, improvements to our bus network will not be possible without addressing the MBTA’s financial constraints. A sustainable, dedicated funding source for the MBTA has yet to be identified, posing challenges for getting projects that prioritize buses off the ground. Plans and initiatives for bus improvements can only be valuable to our bus network if funding is available to execute them. The MBTA must be supported rather than shamed to ensure effective improvement in bus reliability.

The goal of this report is to not only confirm riders’ experience, but also to promote collaborative efforts by the MBTA, municipalities, community organizations, and other stakeholders to transform our bus network into the reliable system riders deserve. This report highlights where improvements to our bus network can be most impactful and provides the opportunity for stakeholders to come together and do the necessary work to create a system that riders can rely on. TransitMatters is hopeful that this report will spark the change we hope to see for our bus network. We look forward to being involved and supporting leaders in their endeavors to prioritize buses.

This blog post was written by Katie Calandriello, TransitMatters’ NextGen Bus, Mobility Hubs, and TransitMatters Labs Project Manager and Policy Analyst. For media inquiries, please email media@transitmatters.org or contact kcalandriello@transitmatters.org for your NextGen Bus questions.

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Photo Credit: James Wang

Media Statement: Blue Hill Avenue Center-Running Bus Lane

BOSTON, March 5, 2024 — We are pleased that the City of Boston has officially confirmed the transformation of Blue Hill Avenue into a multimodal corridor, equipped with center-running dedicated bus lanes, that improves safety and efficiency for all. Serving more than 37,000 riders each weekday, Blue Hill Ave is a crucial corridor that connects the Roxbury, Dorchester, and Mattapan neighborhoods. Many buses including the 28, 29, and 31 utilize the Blue Hill Ave corridor but often experience delay and unreliability. The 28 bus has the highest ridership in the MBTA network and serves mostly low-income and transit dependent riders, but it experiences severe bus bunching and slowdowns along its route due to the lack of bus priority. 

Aging infrastructure along Blue Hill Ave has created safety concerns for drivers, transit users, and pedestrians alike. This investment, with funding from the City of Boston, the federal government, and the MBTA, will improve mobility in Roxbury, Dorchester, and Mattapan. Through the implementation of this bus lane, significant time savings will be had by its thousands of riders, further promoting equity in the MBTA bus network as Black riders spend significantly more time on buses than white riders. The Blue Hill Ave dedicated bus lane, along with the project’s other mobility upgrades, is a major advancement essential to supporting historically disinvested communities. 

TransitMatters applauds the City of Boston for its robust community engagement process, which helped shape this project. The modernization of Blue Hill Ave will promote mobility and transform it into a multimodal corridor that prioritizes safety and accessibility for everyone. We're excited to see the additional beautification elements that along with the transportation improvements, will support local businesses and make the corridor more vibrant and livable. 

TransitMatters supports implementing bus priority measures, such as center-running dedicated bus lanes, to increase reliability and protect buses as a dignified transit option. The success of this project will improve experiences for those of all modes, bus riders, pedestrians, cyclists, and drivers, and create a safer and more livable corridor in the Roxbury, Dorchester, and Mattapan neighborhoods.

For media inquiries, please e-mail media@transitmatters.org. 

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Photo credit: James Wang

TransitMatters Announces Installation of Advocacy Posters in 18 Bus Stops Across Boston

The TransitMatters NextGen Bus team’s new bus advocacy poster!

BOSTON, MA, August 8, 2023 – While all aspects of the MBTA are in disrepair, the bus network is often ignored. With continually cut service in tandem with poor operational standards and underinvestment into the infrastructure that supports the functionality of buses, riders have not been prioritized. TransitMatters aims to change this. 

Through JCDecaux’s Non-Profit Program, TransitMatters is proud to announce the installation of our poster series “Modernize our Bus System; Let’s Prioritize Bus Riders” at 18 bus stops across Boston. 

“The poster is interactive, you can scan [the QR code], and it will bring up the poster in different languages,” said TransitMatters Executive Director Jarred Johnson at the poster launch event in Copley Square. “It will also connect you to the MBTA’s website so that you can give a public comment and not only show your support for bus priority but show your support for improving operational practices so that we don’t have things like bus bunching and so that we have just better operations overall.”

The QR code at the bottom left of the poster brings riders this landing page featuring two auto-email forms: one to tell the T to include better bus operational practices in their plans to improve the bus network and the other to tell the T to continue investing in bus-priority infrastructure. The TransitMatters NextGen Bus team hopes the linked resources will encourage bus riders to take action to ensure that the T prioritizes them in current and future bus planning projects.

The landing page also highlights the roadblocks for better bus trips, explains how to fix them, and creates a stream of action. There is information on bus priority infrastructure and operational practices, such as headway management and pulse points, and how riders can advocate for it. Together, this information can give riders a platform to advocate for themselves, their communities, and their commute.

The TransitMatters NextGen Bus team’s new bus advocacy poster at the Boylston St @ Clarendon St bus stop in Copley Square.

The poster depicts a road suffering from bus bunching and traffic in the background, transitioning to a bus speeding in its own lane in the foreground. Our poster series shows bus riders what their trips could look like if they were the center of bus advocacy. 

TransitMatters encourages our friends and followers to take a photo, tag us on social media, and use the hashtag #prioritizebuses if they encounter a poster at a bus stop. We also ask you to please share both Action Alerts with your friends and family!