The standard local fare for most buses is $1.70 per one-way trip (as of 2024). The Silver Line waterfront routes (SL1, SL2, SL3, SLW) require the higher subway fare of $2.40. Express buses include a local portion priced at the local fare and an express segment traveling via highway to downtown Boston costing $4.25 per trip (2024 rates).
Service experienced interruptions during the COVID-19 pandemic but was mostly reinstated by 2021, although some lines remain inactive. Since 2018, the MBTA has been undertaking a comprehensive redesign of its bus network, with full implementation planned by 2028. The first phase of changes was introduced in December 2024.
Silver Line
The Silver Line consists of six bus rapid transit routes promoted as rapid transit service. It operates two distinct branches: Waterfront service (SL1, SL2, SL3, and the rush-hour SLW shuttle) which runs through the South Boston Transitway tunnel, and Washington Street service (SL4 and SL5) that operates on surface streets. Waterfront routes charge fares equivalent to subway rides, whereas Washington Street routes use standard bus fares. All Silver Line vehicles are articulated buses measuring 60 feet in length; Waterfront buses are hybrid models equipped with extended battery capacity for electric operation within the tunnel.
The SL5 route commenced service in 2002 as a replacement for the Washington Street Elevated. The Shuttle began operations in 2004, followed closely by SL2 and the original SL3 that same year, with SL1 launching in 2005 utilizing dual-mode buses. SL4 started running in 2009 after a proposed tunnel project was canceled. A new SL3 route connecting to Chelsea was introduced in 2018.
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The two existing crosstown (CT) routes offer limited-stop service linking key subway and bus transfer locations. Initially, three such routes were established in 1994; however, CT1 was merged into route 1 in 2019.
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These routes cover nearly all local transit within the metropolitan center, with the majority originally operating as streetcar lines under the Boston Elevated Railway. Numbered approximately clockwise from the southeast to the northeast, these routes have largely preserved their original alignments since the BERy period, despite some consolidations and expansions during the M.T.A. and MBTA administrations.
Seven routes— , , , , , , and — serve the western suburban communities such as Bedford, Waltham, Lexington, and Needham. These lines trace their origins to former Middlesex and Boston Street Railway services that were incorporated in 1972.
In 2004, fourteen routes—including , , , , , , , and — were identified as key bus routes. As the system’s busiest lines, they provide frequent service complementing the subway network by connecting Boston’s most densely populated neighborhoods. Starting in 2024, the MBTA is transitioning away from the "key bus route" designation toward a more comprehensive frequent route network. Routes 28 and 39 operate with 60-foot articulated buses to accommodate higher passenger volumes.
Four early morning round trips numbered 191 through 194 link outlying stations to via multiple local routes. These trips primarily serve station agents but are available to all riders.
... [list continues with remaining routes similarly condensed] ...
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Serving the Melrose vicinity, routes 131 through 137 stem from former Eastern Massachusetts Street Railway lines absorbed into the MBTA in 1968. Routes 136 (now discontinued) and 137 once extended briefly to Lowell and Lawrence while under MBTA management. Route 132 originated as a Service Bus Lines route before transitioning to MBTA operation in 1975.
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Route 171 operates limited service as a replacement for early morning CT3 runs that were discontinued at Logan Airport in 2002. Other routes in the 170 series were short-lived services catering to industrial zones.
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The former 20 belt route was created by the M.T.A. in 1962 by combining BERy’s stub routes 20 and 21; it was rebranded in 2005 as routes 201 and 202 to better distinguish the direction of each loop.
The bus routes numbered 210 through 245 primarily operate within the Quincy region. These lines originated from the former Eastern Massachusetts Street Railway system, which the MBTA incorporated in 1968. After the Red Line's Braintree Branch opened in stages during the 1970s and 1980s, these routes were adjusted to conclude at nearby rapid transit stations, mostly at .
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Serving the Burlington and Woburn locales, routes 350 through 354 trace their origins back to the Eastern Massachusetts Street Railway's Lowell–Boston corridor, which was transferred to the MBTA in 1968. Over time, these routes have been shortened, now ending in Burlington.
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Operating throughout Lynn and the North Shore area, these services include former Service Bus Lines routes (such as 411 and 430), which were acquired in 1975, along with predominantly Eastern Massachusetts Street Railway lines obtained in 1968. Certain weekend variants of two Haymarket routes, identified by a W suffix, terminate at Wonderland.
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These express bus routes provide service between Newton and downtown Boston utilizing the Massachusetts Turnpike (I-90). Established in the 1960s, the MBTA introduced the 500 series to capitalize on the newly extended turnpike. The 550 series has its origins in former Middlesex and Boston Street Railway lines running to Newton Corner, which were extended into downtown Boston during the 1960s and later incorporated into the MBTA system in 1972; however, these routes were shortened back to Newton Corner in 2020.
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Several suburban routes outside the MBTA’s primary network receive partial funding from the authority and provide connections to MBTA transit lines. The commuter routes numbered 712 through 716 were originally operated by private companies: Rapid Transit Inc. runs routes 712 and 713, Nantasket Transportation operates route 714, and Hudson Bus Lines manages route 716.
Local circulator services without route numbers but designated on MBTA maps are municipal shuttles that also benefit from partial MBTA subsidies. Except for the Beverly Shuttle managed by the Cape Ann Transportation Authority, all these services are operated under private contracts.
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