Data Visualization

In December of 2016, a study commissioned by the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority broke down the types of employment industries late-night service riders used. The interactive graphic below breaks down the different industries survey respondents identified as their work industry. For the purposes of this survey, the MBTA defines late-night service as transit operations between the hours of 1 a.m. and 5 a.m.e were 1,963 riders who took the survey. When hovering over the bar representing each industry, the amount of people who checked off that type of job appears.

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The largest industry segment was restaurant, bar, and nightclub employees with 627 respondents. When put into the context of the entire survey pool, almost 32 percent of all late-night riders worked in this industry.

Former bartenders such as Derek Palmer said they benefited from the previous late-night service pilot. Others can benefit as more late-night buses are brought back.

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“When it used to run, the late night service was great,” said Palmer. “I used to work as a bartender and it was nice not having to pay $30 for a cab ride at the end of every shift. Working in a bar, specifically late nights, you're not getting out until very late and you don't have a lot of options except for taxi and uber. And those are much more expensive than public transport, especially when it's late.”

Palmer said, “I hear that they might bring it back and I hope they do because, while I don't work as a bartender anymore, I know many, many people would benefit from it.”

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Retail workers were also a common rider during the initial pilot program. In total, there were 132 survey respondents who said they work in the retail industry. That makes up almost seven percent of the responding body.

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Kayla Mettler, a cashier at a convenient store in Malden, Mass., also believes she would benefit from a late night service.

“I've worked many late shifts here and I usually always miss the final bus and have someone else to pick me up because I don't have a car,” said Mettler. Mettler continued, “If the bus stayed open later, I would not have that problem. I would have to stop relying on other people like friends or co-workers to take me home, I could just hop on the bus instead.”

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“I don't know why they changed it, I know they had it for a while but got rid of it, but now they're thinking of bringing it back? But why take it away to begin with? It just doesn't make sense,” said Mettler.

Passenger surveys conducted by the MBTA included information about the frequency rate in which riders would use the late-night services. The chart below breaks down the percentage of how often riders used these later services.

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A majority of riders used the late-night services with at least some degree of regularity. In total, 71 percent of all survey respondents said they used the MBTA’s late-night services at least once or twice per week.

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Only eight percent of riders said they never use the late-night service, while 15 percent use less than once a month. Six percent also said they used the service less than once every three months.

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In December of 2016, the MBTA conducted a survey of 6711 late night Boston travelers. The survey concluded that 82 percent of travelers had utilized a cab service or equivalent to their destination. 43 percent of people walk to their destination.

The reason for this potentially dangerous choice could be that they are either in close proximity, want to save money, or simply have no other options available to them.

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Carpooling and driving alone came in at 21 percent, and 18 percent. However, driving does not come without a significant cost. Parking garages, and gas can easily cost a late night worker a quarter or more of their income. Biking is at 14 percent, and still puts a traveler at risk for theft or difficult travel, depending on the weather. Private transit, and the MBTA is less than 5 percent.

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This could also be because there are simply not enough options available in late night transportation. Considering so many are paying for a taxi service, it seems fair to conclude late night travelers would save money and benefit from having a late night bus service.

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The MBTA currently has three methods of payment for their Boston travelers. This includes a pre-paid Charlie Card, the option to buy a single pass, and to pay in cash. In a survey conducted by the MBTA in December of 2016 of 6637 workers, and non-workers, both concluded that the preferred method of payment would be to buy a charlie card in advance. Buying a Charlie Card can save the rider a significant amount of money, and is more convenient to a rider who travels more than one day a week. Carrying cash poses the obvious risk of losing it, or theft.

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Eduard Baskin, a college junior at Suffolk University, feels that college students could also benefit from a late night service, as alternative options from public transportation can be quite expensive.

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“I feel like its really annoying for college students because we are usually out late anyway, whether its studying for finals or going out with friends. And the fact that we either have to end the night at 12:30 or call an uber is frustrating,” said Baskin.

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“I don't see why it can't run until 2 in the morning, especially if that's what they had before. It's even more annoying for when we go to concerts in Boston and some of those don't start until very late and we get out and everything around us is closed.”

“So we uber back which can be very expensive. Maybe it is less of a problem for kids who live on campus, but I live off-campus in Malden and I have to rely on the Orange Line. A late night service would be incredibly helpful,” said Baskin.

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While MBTA could not reached for a comment, Steve Poftak, vice-chair of the MBTA’s fiscal management and control board told reporters that “We’re trying to see what the appetite is to provide this service, what the cost of the service would be, and then we’ll try to make a thoughtful decision about what’s a sustainable financial model for night bus service.” This statement was made to reporters on Jan. 22, 2018, according to the State House News Service.

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As of April 1, 2018, MBTA has brought back an early morning bus service to some of its routes that will begin as early as 3:20 am.

According to Andrew McFarland, community engagement manager for the LivableStreets Alliance and its Better Buses initiative, it goes to key bus routes which are “a special designation that the T has given to certain high-ridership routes over the years.”

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The new schedule includes, 17 additional early morning trips on routes 16, 19, 31, 32, 65, 70, 117, 455, and nine trips departing earlier on routes 31, 104, 109, and 455.

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