47 (MBTA bus)

Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority bus division

Company type	Division of a public agency
Industry	Public transportation
Headquarters	Boston , United States
Area served	Boston metropolitan area
Products	Bus transit services
Owner	Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA)
Website	mbta.com

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority's bus division manages 151 routes throughout the Boston, Massachusetts metropolitan region, providing connections to the MBTA subway, MBTA Commuter Rail, and other bus lines. Many of these routes have their origins in former streetcar corridors or were once operated by suburban companies such as the Eastern Massachusetts Street Railway and Middlesex and Boston Street Railway. Of these, the MBTA directly oversees 147 routes, while four are operated under contract by private firms, and an additional four suburban services receive partial funding from the MBTA.

As of 2024, the standard fare for local bus rides is $1.70 per trip. The Silver Line's waterfront services (SL1, SL2, SL3, SLW) charge the subway fare of $2.40. Express bus routes feature a two-tier fare structure: local segments are priced at the local fare, whereas express portions on highways cost $4.25.

Service levels were significantly impacted during the COVID-19 pandemic but had largely returned to pre-pandemic frequencies by 2021; however, some routes remain inactive. Since 2018, the MBTA has been developing an extensive bus network overhaul aimed for completion in 2028, with initial modifications commencing in December 2024.

Silver Line

The Silver Line consists of six routes operating as a bus rapid transit system and is marketed as rapid transit. It comprises two main branches: the Waterfront services (SL1, SL2, SL3, SLW) that utilize the South Boston Transitway tunnel, and the Washington Street services (SL4, SL5), which run on surface streets. Waterfront routes charge fares equivalent to the subway system; in contrast, Washington Street routes apply standard bus fares. All Silver Line vehicles are articulated buses measuring 60 feet in length; those servicing the Waterfront branch are hybrid models equipped with extended battery capacity to facilitate electric operation within tunnels.

The SL5 line replaced the former Washington Street Elevated in 2002. The Shuttle service was introduced in 2004, followed closely by SL2 and the initial SL3 also in 2004; SL1 commenced in 2005 featuring dual-mode buses. SL4 began operations in 2009 after plans for a tunnel extension were cancelled. A new SL3 route serving Chelsea started running in 2018.

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 MBTA operates two crosstown (CT) routes that provide limited-stop service linking key subway stations and major bus transfer hubs. Initially launched with three routes in 1994, 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

1–121

These routes cover almost the entirety of local transit within the metropolitan center, many of which have their roots in the streetcar lines once operated by the Boston Elevated Railway. Arranged approximately in a clockwise sequence from the southeast to the northeast, this network has largely preserved its original structure since its BERy inception, adapting through the Metropolitan Transit Authority and MBTA periods. Additional routes have been introduced over time.

Seven routes – , , , , , , and – serve the western suburban communities such as Bedford, Waltham, Lexington, and Needham. These lines descend from services acquired from the Middlesex and Boston Street Railway in 1972 and were reassigned numbers that had previously been retired.

Designated in 2004 as key bus routes, fourteen lines – including , , , , , , , , , , , , , and – represent the highest ridership corridors. They complement the subway system by delivering frequent transit options to Boston’s most densely populated neighborhoods. Beginning in 2024, the MBTA is phasing out the "key route" designation as part of its Bus Network Redesign initiative, replacing it with an expanded network of frequent service routes. Routes 28 and 39 operate with 60-foot articulated buses to accommodate greater passenger volumes.

Four early morning round trips operate between outlying stations and by traversing sections of multiple local routes. Although primarily designed for station agents, these trips are accessible to all riders. Internally numbered 191–194, they appear as variants of local routes in published schedules.

... [list continues with same formatting for remaining routes] ...

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

Serving the Melrose vicinity, routes 131 through 137 originate from former Eastern Massachusetts Street Railway lines that were incorporated into the MBTA system in 1968. Routes 136 (now discontinued) and 137 once extended briefly to Lowell and Lawrence during MBTA operation. Route 132 was initially operated by Service Bus Lines before MBTA assumed control in 1975.

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

171

Route 171 provides limited early morning service as a replacement for the CT3 route following its reduction from Logan Airport in 2002. Other routes in the 170 series were short-lived services catering to industrial zones.

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

201–202

Initially established in 1962 by the M.T.A. from BERY's routes 20 and 21, the former 20 belt route was renamed in 2005 as routes 201 and 202 to better indicate the loop directions around Fields Corner.

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

210–245

Operating mainly within Quincy, routes numbered 210 to 245 trace their origins to former Eastern Massachusetts Street Railway lines absorbed by the MBTA in 1968. With the gradual inauguration of the Red Line’s Braintree Branch during the 1970s and 1980s, these services were realigned to conclude at newly established rapid transit stations, predominantly .

Route	Description	MBTA link
210	REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system to REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system	Template:MBTA bus EL
211	REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system to Squantum	Template:MBTA bus EL
215	From REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system to REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system passing through West Quincy	Template:MBTA bus EL
216	Connecting Houghs Neck with REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system via Germantown	Template:MBTA bus EL
217	Linking REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system and REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system	Template:MBTA bus EL
220	Service between Hingham, Massachusetts and REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system	Template:MBTA bus EL
222	Weymouth, Massachusetts to REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system	Template:MBTA bus EL
225	Between Weymouth Landing/East Braintree station and REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system	Template:MBTA bus EL
226	Connecting Weymouth, Massachusetts with Braintree station	Template:MBTA bus EL
230	From Montello station to REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system	Template:MBTA bus EL
236	Service linking South Shore Plaza and REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system	Template:MBTA bus EL
238	Between Holbrook/Randolph station and REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system	Template:MBTA bus EL
240	From Avon, Massachusetts to REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system	Template:MBTA bus EL
245	Linking REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system with REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system	Template:MBTA bus EL

350–354

Serving the Burlington and Woburn regions, these routes originate from the Eastern Massachusetts Street Railway’s Lowell–Boston line, which was incorporated into the MBTA system in 1968 and later shortened to terminate at Burlington.

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

411–465

Serving Lynn and the North Shore area, these routes encompass former Service Bus Lines (411, 430) that were incorporated in 1975, along with lines inherited from the Eastern Massachusetts Street Railway since 1968. On weekends, select Haymarket routes featuring a W suffix conclude their trips at Wonderland station.

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	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 routes provide service between Newton and downtown Boston utilizing the Massachusetts Turnpike (I-90). The MBTA launched the 500 series in the 1960s following the extension of the turnpike into Boston. The 550 series evolved from Middlesex and Boston Street Railway lines reaching Newton Corner; these were extended downtown in the 1960s, later acquired by the MBTA in 1972, but were shortened back to Newton Corner in 2020.

Route	Description	MBTA link
501	Brighton Center to Federal Street & Franklin Street in Boston's Financial District	Template:MBTA bus EL
504	Watertown Yard to Federal Street & Franklin Street in Boston's Financial District	Template:MBTA bus EL
505	Waltham Center to Federal Street & Franklin Street in Boston's Financial District	Template:MBTA bus EL
553	Roberts (Brandeis/Roberts station) to Newton Corner	Template:MBTA bus EL

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Route	Description	MBTA link
554	Waverley Square–Newton Corner	Template:MBTA bus EL
556	Waltham Highlands–Newton Corner	Template:MBTA bus EL
558	Riverside station–Newton Corner	Template:MBTA bus EL

Privately operated routes

The MBTA provides partial funding for suburban transit lines beyond its primary service zone that connect to the MBTA network. Routes 712 through 716 are radial commuter lines originally managed by private companies—specifically, Rapid Transit Inc. operated routes 712 and 713, Nantasket Transportation managed route 714, and Hudson Bus Lines ran route 716.

Local circulator routes without numerical designations are established by local governments and receive some MBTA financial support. Except for the Beverly Shuttle, which is operated by the Cape Ann Transportation Authority, all these services are run by private contractors.

Route	Description	MBTA link	Operator
Template:MBTABus	Point Shirley, Winthrop to REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system via Revere Street	Template:MBTA bus EL	Paul Revere Transportation
Template:MBTABus	Point Shirley, Winthrop to REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system via Winthrop Center	Template:MBTA bus EL
714	Pemberton Point, Hull to Station Street, Hingham	Template:MBTA bus EL	DPV Transportation
716	(Cobbs Corner) to REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system	(DPV Transportation)
BED	Local transit service in Bedford, Massachusetts	Link	Town of Bedford
BEV	City of Beverly Shuttle service	Link	CATA
LEX	Lexington, Massachusetts Lexpress (four routes)	Link	Town of Lexington
MIS	Mission Hill, Boston LINK service	Link	Volunteers