5 minutes Date Enacted: Jun 6, 2016
The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (aka, “the T”), which serves Boston and its metropolitan area, faces a challenge, familiar to many other agencies, in meeting its ADA paratransit requirements in a way that is both responsive and financially sustainable for both the agency and users. Currently, The RIDE charges up to $5.25 to users. Despite servicing a much smaller ridership, its operating expenses are more than seven times that of both ferries and buses, and more than a quarter that of the commuter rail system, among contracted services . According to a state report on procurement, an average one-way passenger trip cost (including fixed costs) about $47.
Around the same time as the TNC pilot was announced, RIDE announced the procurement and implementation of a Centralized Call & Control Center for Paratransit Services. The centralized system chosen, which is contracted out to a single vendor to handle the entire coverage area. The former system had four coverage zones that required additional coordination. The agency predicted a full return on investment soon after the launch.