WRTA May Extend Free Bus Policy Into 2023

WORCESTER, MA — Free buses in the Worcester area may continue for at least six months past an upcoming expiration date under a new proposal in front of the Worcester Regional Transit Authority board this week.

On Thursday, the WRTA board — comprised of representatives from the more than three dozen cities and towns served by the transit agency — will meet to consider extending the fare-free policy until June 2023, according to the agenda.

The board last voted in November to keep the fare-free policy until Dec. 31. But the policy has been in place since near the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, when WRTA suspended fare collections in March 2020 as a way to keep distance between riders and drivers.

A fare-free WRTA system has been a goal since before the pandemic. The group Zero Fare WRTA began advocating for the elimination of fares months before the pandemic, and a Worcester Regional Research Bureau report released in 2019 provided a policy blueprint for the change.

WRTA typically collects about $3 million from fares each year. The transit system has been plugging that hole with federal stimulus money that came out of the pandemic.

According to the agenda, the WRTA board on Thursday would approve the extension with the goal of coming up with a permanent way to pay for fare-free during budget season in the spring. The fiscal year 2024 budget would go into effect by July 1, 2023.

WRTA buses provide fixed-route service across a wide area from West Brookfield to Shrewsbury, and as far north as West Boylston. The agency also provides paratransit bus service to 37 communities in Worcester County. Those buses are also part of the fare-free policy.