Taunton, Attleboro area buses will be fare free thanks to state funding. What we know
Last year, GATRA was one of two regional transportation authorities in Massachusetts that did not take advantage of state funding to provide fare free buses year round. However, that is set to change.
A spokesperson for GATRA (Greater Attleboro Taunton Regional Transit Authority) told the Gazette "we anticipate becoming fare free on GATRA's fixed route and complementary ADA paratransit services once funding has been awarded."
"We anticipate this funding to be for the remainder of this fiscal year, which ends June 30, 2026," the spokesperson added. "Future fare free programming would depend on future funding availability. Dial-A-Ride and GATRA GO microtransit will not be fare free."
It is unclear when the fare free buses will go into effect but here is what we know.
GATRA previously provided fare free travel on limited occasions
A GATRA spokesperson said GATRA has provided free bus travel on a number of occasions, specifically between March and August of 2020, and between Black Friday and New Year's Eve for the years 2022, 2023, and 2024 as part of their "Try Transit" initiative.
Why state is providing funding for fare-free travel
A spokesperson for MassDOT said that while it is "difficult to gather all-encompassing data on ridership," the data that does exist shows that RTA customers often have low incomes. Four RTAs recently completed surveys, the spokesperson said, "that indicate the majority of their respective customers have household incomes below $25,000 annually."
In a press release announcing the funding, officials touted fare free travel as a way to increase transit ridership and increase affordability.
"We're proud to be delivering this funding to help RTAs keep their service fare free to save money for riders and encourage more people to use public transportation," Gov. Maura Healy said.
One RTA administrator, Noah Berger of the Merrimack Valley RTA, which provides bus service in Lawrence and Haverhill, said that providing fare free bus travel has been transformative for the RTA.
"Since going fare free, our fixed route bus ridership has quadrupled and now exceeds pre-pandemic levels by over 60%, while passenger complaints are down a third. Bus trips are faster, and drivers are happier because they no longer have to police the fare policy," Berger said. "Our riders report no longer having to ration trips to medical or educational appointments due to cost, and they are keeping more money in their pockets to spend at local businesses in Lawrence, Methuen and Haverhill."
This article originally appeared on The Taunton Daily Gazette: Taunton area buses to become fare free. What we know
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