Late-Night on the MBTA Is Dead. Can NightBus Resurrect It?
Spencer Buell | Boston Magazine
“The NightBus. Could it be Boston’s next and best shot at 24-hour public transit?
Advocates with Transit Matters seem to think so. The idea for a network of T buses running a limited schedule overnight has been kicking around ever since the death of late night service in February, and supporters of the proposal pitched it once again to the MBTA’s fiscal and management control board Monday. According to the Globe, it was at least marginally well received (there were concerns about uncertain costs and uncertain demand for the service).
The most recent iteration of the plan would see buses run every 75 minutes on eight routes from 1–5 a.m. and would cost, by advocates’ estimates, about $3.5 million. That’s more than the initial estimate in a Commonwealth pitch that argued it could cost as little as $1 million a year, but a fraction of the nearly $15 million the late-night rail pilot cost last year.”
