171 (MBTA bus)

Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) Bus System

Company type	Public transit agency
Industry	Public transportation
Headquarters	Boston , United States
Area served	Boston metropolitan region
Products	Bus services, including Silver Line bus rapid transit and express buses
Owner	Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority
Website	mbta.com

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) bus system manages 151 routes throughout the Boston metropolitan region, offering connections to MBTA subway lines, Commuter Rail services, and other bus networks. Of these routes, the MBTA directly operates 147, while four are managed by private contractors. Furthermore, four suburban bus services receive partial financial support from the MBTA.

As of 2024, the standard fare for local bus rides is $1.70 per trip. The Silver Line waterfront routes (SL1, SL2, SL3, SLW) charge the typical subway fare of $2.40. Express buses apply a two-part fare structure: $1.70 for the local segment and $4.25 for the express highway portion.

Service disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic have mostly been resolved by 2021; however, a few routes remain inactive. Since 2018, the MBTA has been implementing an extensive redesign of its bus network, targeting completion by 2028, with initial modifications introduced in December 2024.

Silver Line

The Silver Line comprises six bus rapid transit routes promoted as a rapid transit option. It includes two main branches: the Waterfront service (SL1, SL2, SL3, SLW), which operates through the South Boston Transitway tunnel, and the Washington Street service (SL4, SL5), which runs along surface streets. Waterfront routes require payment of subway fares, whereas Washington Street routes charge standard bus fares. All Silver Line vehicles are 60-foot articulated buses; Waterfront routes utilize hybrid models equipped with extended battery capacity to enable electric operation within tunnels.

The SL5 route replaced the Washington Street Elevated line in 2002; the Shuttle service began operations in 2004, followed by SL2 and SL3 later that year. The SL1 route was introduced in 2005 featuring dual-mode buses. The SL4 line started in 2009 as a substitute for a canceled tunnel project. In 2018, a new SL3 route connecting Chelsea was launched.

Route	Description	MBTA link
SL1	Logan Airport terminals– REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system	Template:MBTA bus EL
SL2	Drydock Avenue– REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system	Template:MBTA bus EL
SL3	REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system – REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system	Template:MBTA bus EL
SLW	REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system – REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system	Template:MBTA bus EL
SL4	REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system –South Station	Template:MBTA bus EL
SL5	REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system – REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system (Temple Place)	Template:MBTA bus EL

Crosstown

The two crosstown (CT) lines deliver limited-stop service linking key subway stations and bus transfer hubs. Originally launched with three crosstown routes in 1994 by the MBTA, route CT1 was merged into route 1 in 2019.

Route	Description	MBTA link
CT2	REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system – REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system	Template:MBTA bus EL
CT3	Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital– REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system	Template:MBTA bus EL

Routes 1–121

These lines encompass nearly all local transit within Boston’s metropolitan core; most have origins as streetcar routes operated by the Boston Elevated Railway. Numbered generally in a clockwise sequence from southeast to northeast, these services have largely remained consistent since the BERy period despite some consolidations and expansions during both Metropolitan Transit Authority and MBTA administrations.

Seven routes— , , , , , , and —extend service into western suburbs such as Bedford, Waltham, Lexington, and Needham. These originated from former Middlesex and Boston Street Railway lines acquired in 1972 and were assigned numbers previously unused.

Fourteen routes—including , , , , , , , , , , , , , and —were identified as key bus lines in 2004 due to their high ridership levels. These frequent-service routes complement subway coverage by serving densely populated urban areas. With the MBTA’s Bus Network Redesign initiated in 2024, the “key bus route” designation is being replaced by a broader frequent route network classification. Routes 28 and 39 operate using 60-foot articulated buses.

Additionally, four early morning round-trips numbered 191 through 194 operate between outlying stations and over sections of various local lines. Primarily intended for station staff but open to all passengers, these trips are listed as variants of local routes in official schedules.

Route	Description	MBTA link
1	Harvard Square– REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system	Template:MBTA bus EL
4	REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system –Marine Park	Template:MBTA bus EL

131–137

Routes numbered 131 through 137 operate within the Melrose region, tracing their origins to former Eastern Massachusetts Street Railway lines that were absorbed into the MBTA system in 1968. Under MBTA oversight, routes 136 and 137 once extended temporarily to Lowell and Lawrence before being discontinued. The 132 route began as a Service Bus Lines operation prior to its transition to MBTA control in 1975.

Route	Description	MBTA link
131	Melrose Highlands to either REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system or REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system	Template:MBTA bus EL
132	Redstone Shopping Center connecting to REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system	Template:MBTA bus EL
134	North Woburn serving REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system	Template:MBTA bus EL
137	Reading Depot linking to REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system	Template:MBTA bus EL

171

Route 171 functions as a limited early-morning substitute for CT3 trips that were truncated from Logan Airport service in 2002. Historically, routes in the 170 series primarily catered to industrial zones on a temporary basis.

Route	Description	MBTA link
171	Logan Airport terminals to REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system	Template:MBTA bus EL

201–202

The M.T.A. established the number 20 belt route in 1962 by combining BERY’s former stub routes 20 and 21. In 2005, this loop was divided into two separate routes—201 and 202—to provide clearer directional guidance for passengers.

Route	Description	MBTA link
201	Fields Corner Loop traveling via Neponset Avenue	Template:MBTA bus EL
202	Fields Corner Loop routed through Adams Street	Template:MBTA bus EL

210–245

Serving the Quincy vicinity, routes numbered from 210 to 245 stem from former Eastern Massachusetts Street Railway lines that were integrated into the MBTA network in 1968. With the gradual introduction of the Red Line’s Braintree Branch during the 1970s and 1980s, these services were realigned to conclude primarily at rapid transit stations such as Quincy Center.

Route	Description	MBTA link

|-

|  210
| 

1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system

to

1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system

| Template:MBTA bus EL 

|-

|  211
| 

1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system

to Squantum

| Template:MBTA bus EL 

|-

|  215
| 

1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system

to

1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system

via West Quincy

| Template:MBTA bus EL 

|-

|  216
| Houghs Neck to 

1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system

passing through Germantown

| Template:MBTA bus EL 

|-

|  217
| 

1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system

to

1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system

| Template:MBTA bus EL 

|-

|  220
| Hingham, Massachusetts "Hingham Depot" to 

1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system

| Template:MBTA bus EL 

|-

|  222
| Weymouth, Massachusetts East Weymouth to 

1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system

| Template:MBTA bus EL 

|-

|  225
| Weymouth Landing/East Braintree station Weymouth Landing to 

1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system

| Template:MBTA bus EL 

|-

|  226
| Weymouth, Massachusetts Columbian Square to Braintree station
| Template:MBTA bus EL 

|-

|  230
| Montello station to 

1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system

| Template:MBTA bus EL 

|-

|  236
| South Shore Plaza connecting with 

1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system

| Template:MBTA bus EL 

|-

|  238
| Holbrook/Randolph station linked with 

1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system

| Template:MBTA bus EL 

|-

|  240
| Avon, Massachusetts Avon Square to 

1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system

| Template:MBTA bus EL 

|-

|  245
| Route between 

1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system

and

1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system

| Template:MBTA bus EL 245 

|- |}

350–354

These lines operate within the Burlington and Woburn region, originally part of the Eastern Massachusetts Street Railway's Lowell–Boston corridor. The MBTA took over these routes in 1968 and subsequently shortened the service to terminate in Burlington.

Route	Route Description	MBTA Link
350	North Burlington to REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system	Template:MBTA bus EL
351	Bedford Woods Drive to Third Avenue	Template:MBTA bus EL
354	North Burlington to State Street, Boston	Template:MBTA bus EL

411–465

Serving Lynn and the North Shore area, these routes include former Service Bus Lines (routes 411 and 430) acquired in 1975, along with Eastern Massachusetts Street Railway lines taken over in 1968. On weekends, two Haymarket routes feature short-turn variants marked with a W suffix that end service at Wonderland.

Route	Route Description	MBTA Link
411	Kennedy Drive or Jack Satter House to REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system	Template:MBTA bus EL
424	Eastern Avenue & Essex Street to REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system	Template:MBTA bus EL
426	Central Square, Lynn to REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system	Template:MBTA bus EL
426W	Central Square, Lynn to Wonderland station	Template:MBTA bus EL
428	Oaklandvale to Haymarket station	Template:MBTA bus EL
429	Northgate Shopping Center to Central Square, Lynn	Template:MBTA bus EL
430	Saugus Center to Malden Center station	Template:MBTA bus EL
435	Salem Depot to Central Square, Lynn via Peabody Square	Template:MBTA bus EL
436	"Liberty Tree Mall" to Central Square, Lynn via Goodwin Circle	Template:MBTA bus EL
439	Nahant to Wonderland station	Template:MBTA bus EL
441	Marblehead to Wonderland station via Massachusetts Route 1A#Paradise Road	Template:MBTA bus EL
442	Marblehead to Wonderland station via Humphrey Street	Template:MBTA bus EL
450	Salem Depot to REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system	Template:MBTA bus EL
450W	Salem Depot to Wonderland station	Template:MBTA bus EL
451	North Beverly station to Salem Depot	Template:MBTA bus EL
455	Salem Depot to Wonderland station	Template:MBTA bus EL
456	Salem Depot to Central Square, Lynn	Template:MBTA bus EL

501–558

These express services link Newton, Massachusetts with downtown Boston utilizing the Massachusetts Turnpike (I-90). The creation of the 500 series dates back to the 1960s when the turnpike was extended into Boston. The 550 series evolved from Middlesex and Boston Street Railway routes serving Newton Corner station, later expanded downtown during the 1960s and incorporated into the MBTA network in 1972. In 2020, these routes were shortened again to end at Newton Corner.

Route	Route Description	MBTA Link
501	"Brighton Center"–Financial District, Boston at Federal & Franklin Streets	Template:MBTA bus EL
"Watertown Yard"–Financial District, Boston at Federal & Franklin Streets	504}
"Waltham Center"–Financial District, Boston at Federal & Franklin Streets	505}
"Roberts" (Brandeis/Roberts station)– REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system	553}
"Waverley Square"– REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system	554}
"Waltham Highlands"– REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system	556}
"Riverside station"– REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system	558}

Privately operated routes

The MBTA provides partial funding for suburban bus lines located beyond its core service boundaries that connect to the MBTA transit network. The radial commuter services numbered 712 through 716 were originally operated by private companies—Rapid Transit Inc. managed routes 712 and 713, Nantasket Transportation handled route 714, and Hudson Bus Lines operated route 716 before MBTA acquisition.

Local circulator routes without assigned numbers have been established by local governments with financial assistance from the MBTA. These services are all operated by private contractors, except for the Beverly Shuttle, which is overseen by the Cape Ann Transportation Authority.

Route	Description	MBTA link	Operator
Template:MBTABus	Point Shirley, Winthrop– REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system via Revere Street	Template:MBTA bus EL	Paul Revere Transportation
Template:MBTABus	Point Shirley, Winthrop– REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system via Winthrop Center	Template:MBTA bus EL
714	Pemberton Point, Hull–Station Street, Hingham	Template:MBTA bus EL	DPV Transportation
716	Cobbs Corner– REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system	(mbta link)
'BED' Bedford Local Transit	(bedfordma.gov link)	'Town of Bedford'
'BEV' Beverly Shuttle	(canntran.com link)	'CATA'
'LEX' Lexington Lexpress (4 routes)	(lexingtonma.gov link)	'Town of Lexington'
'MIS' Mission Hill LINK	(missionhilllink.org link)	'Volunteers'