GREATER BOSTON’S transit history is legendary. Our region once stood at the forefront of innovation, with achievements that inspired global admiration and emulation.
The Green Line’s Tremont Subway, which opened in 1897, wasn’t just the first underground rapid transit line in the Americas—it was one of the first in the world, heralded internationally as a marvel of modern engineering. Almost a century later, the Southwest Corridor project transformed canceled highway plans into a visionary blend of transit with the relocated MBTA Orange Line, green space, and community development, complete with a linear park, recreational facilities, and educational spaces. It remains one of the most celebrated achievements of post-war transit planning in the US.
Boston is also the birthplace of less tangible innovations like the discounted railway tickets for frequent travelers pioneered by the Boston and Worcester Railroad. For generations, our region was a hub of transit ingenuity.
Despite this proud history, we’ve now resigned ourselves to complacency, even in the face of soaring traffic and skyrocketing housing costs. Today, the spark of leadership and innovation is fading when it’s most needed. While other cities and countries tackle transportation challenges with courage and a long-term vision, Boston and the Metro Boston region are losing their edge.
Whether we live in Boston, Brockton, or Burlington, we all deserve transportation options that connect our communities, reduce traffic, and ensure our region is vibrant, inclusive, and prosperous. Instead, we’re falling behind. It’s going to take an “all of the above” approach to both raise enough revenue to catch up and to do so in a fair way that helps us reach our climate change goals.
Greater Boston’s traffic congestion ranks among the worst in the nation, yet there’s no concrete regional plan to address it.
Meanwhile, New York City has implemented the first congestion pricing program in the US, a landmark policy designed to reduce urban gridlock and make Lower and Midtown Manhattan more pedestrian-friendly.
This initiative has led to a 7.5 percent reduction in traffic within the congestion zone and a 30-40 percent decrease in travel times for river crossings. Additionally, subway ridership has increased by 7 percent on weekdays and 12 percent on weekends compared to January 2024.
The program will also fund a $15 billion capital plan to modernize and expand the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, the state agency the oversees New York’s subway, bus, and commuter rail systems. And despite President Trump’s legally dubious effort to kill the congestion pricing initiative, 6 in 10 New York State voters want to keep the policy.
Imagine if Greater Boston had such a plan. Instead of endless traffic, we’d have clearer roads and more funding to boot. We often feel resigned to delays and half-measures, but a better solution is just a train ride away.
While the rest of the world embraces fast, frequent, and driverless trains, we continue to grapple with signal delays and long wait times. Driverless express subway lines are becoming a hallmark of the world’s leading transit systems, offering trains that can run as often as every 80 seconds, lower operating costs, and streamlined overnight service. These systems allow trains to cover sizable distances quickly, offering a reliable and competitive alternative to driving while also reducing congestion on local bus and rail lines.
Cities like Paris have converted some of their oldest metro lines to driverless operation, and Honolulu recently became the first US city to open a fully automated rail system. Montreal’s REM—an automated metro with climate-controlled stations and platform screen doors—now covers 10 miles in under 20 minutes.
By comparison, traveling the same distance on the MBTA can take anywhere from 31 minutes to nearly an hour, often delayed by signal issues or long, unpredictable headways. Meanwhile, while the Green Line Extension cost $530 million per mile (even after being pared down in scope), our neighbors to the north built the REM for just a fifth of that amount.
Then there’s funding—or the lack of it. While Massachusetts debates incremental reforms, Los Angeles County has embraced a bold approach. Through regional ballot initiatives, LA County has committed to raising $120 billion over 35 years, enough to nearly double the size of its transit network. It’s why LA is home to the only full-sized subway line under construction in the United States.
Greater Boston may be smaller than LA, but we’re 25 percent richer on a per capita basis. Even a fraction of that investment could transform our transportation network. Yet regional ballot initiatives remain off-limits to Massachusetts municipalities, hamstringing our ability to tackle large-scale projects.
This isn’t to say we haven’t seen progress. When communities and politicians push for real solutions and invest accordingly, meaningful change follows, from our bike network to transforming commuter rail.
The Bluebikes system, owned by local municipalities, has become a model for regional collaboration, stretching from the foot of the Blue Hills to Salem. With continued expansion, e-bikes, and robust discount programs, Bluebikes is breaking ridership records, supported by bike-friendly infrastructure in cities like Boston, Cambridge, and Somerville.
One of the biggest opportunities to improve our transit system had been languishing on Beacon Hill—automated bus lane enforcement. Automated enforcement will allow buses to capture the license plates of cars driving in the bus lane so that tickets can be issued. The program is designed with robust privacy protections from the outset. This technology could significantly speed up service while reducing collisions.
Massachusetts is finally moving forward with automated bus lane enforcement, following the example set by cities like New York. In New York, this technology improved bus speeds by up to 30 percent and reduced collisions by 20 percent. While concerns about equity have been raised, data from Baltimore’s speeding camera pilot suggests that well-designed programs can minimize negative impacts on local drivers; in fact, most citations are issued to drivers from outside the area.
The MBTA is also piloting dual catenary-battery electric trains, a first in the US, to bring rapid-transit style service to the Fairmount Line, a commuter rail line serving an environmental justice corridor in Boston. These new trains will use the limited overhead wires available near South Station to charge batteries, allowing them to run to the line’s terminus in Hyde Park and back.
This initiative is part of a nascent transformation of our commuter rail system into a truly regional rail system that provides all-day frequent service—something no American transit network has yet achieved. These projects hint at the innovation we are capable of, but they remain the exception, not the rule.
Our rich history shows what’s possible when we dare to lead. The Tremont Subway, the Southwest Corridor, and discounts for frequent riders were all bold, transformative projects requiring vision and ambition. Today, we face challenges that demand an equally audacious response.
To get there, we need to demand action. Massachusetts is one of the wealthiest states in the nation. Greater Boston alone has an economy the size of Norway’s, yet we remain the only major metro area without dedicated funding for new transit infrastructure.
Without urgent action, Metro Boston risks being left behind. It’s time for all of us—whether we ride the T daily or benefit from less traffic because others do—to call on our leaders to fund the future of transit. That means bringing things like the registry fees and ride-share service fees in line with peer states, it means a serious conversation about congestion pricing and so-called “toll equity,” and it also means getting creative with parking revenues, ballot referendums, and leveraging MBTA and state land. By investing in bold solutions, we can make Greater Boston a model of equity, climate action, and economic opportunity.
It’s time for Greater Boston to reclaim its legacy as a leader in transit innovation. The stakes couldn’t be higher, but the rewards—a more connected, equitable, and sustainable region—are well worth the effort. The question is: Will we rise to the occasion? Or will we continue to let our past overshadow our future? The choice is ours.
Jarred Johnson is a board member and policy counsel lead at TransitMatters.
The post Greater Boston must reclaim its transit leadership appeared first on CommonWealth Beacon.