Routes 23, 28, and 29 will be included
Mayor Michelle Wu announced on Feb. 10 that the City of Boston will be launching a two-year, fare-free program on MBTA bus Routes 23, 28, and 29 on March 1. The program will be an extension of the fare-free Route 28 pilot program and will eliminate fares on the other two routes mentioned. According to a media release, “fare-free buses enable all-door boarding, which eases congestion and speeds up bus service.” Riders still will be paying for transfers to other MBTA routes and services. The routes have some of the highest ridership throughout all of Boston. Route 23 serves over 100,000 monthly riders, while Route 28 saw 12,000 every day, after fares were eliminated in August 2021. As for Route 29, it “intersects with Route 28 and runs past Egleston Square Branch of the Boston Public Library, and several Boston Housing Authority developments, including the Franklin Field Apartments and the Doris Bunté Apartments.”
Shira Laucharoen is a reporter based in Boston. She currently serves as the assistant director of the Boston Institute for Nonprofit Journalism. In the past she has written for Sampan newspaper, The Somerville Times, Scout Magazine, Boston Magazine, and WBUR.