MBTA Honors 35 Years of the ADA

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) is celebrating the 35^th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), joining advocates, members of the community, and legislators at the ADA 35 Rally and March led by the City of Boston and the Boston Center for Independent Living July 23.

“Accessibility is essential to quality of life and the ability to enjoy all that life has to offer. This ADA 35 event is a reminder that there is more to do,” said MBTA General Manager and CEO Phillip Eng. “With a focus on accessibility as we rebuild our infrastructure, the MBTA is committed to doing our part to make sure all who want or need to use public transportation can do so. I’d like to thank Laura Brelsford, assistant GM for systemwide accessibility, for her leadership; our entire workforce; and our partnership with advocates and stakeholders that helps drive this progress to date and the work that lies ahead in making our system fully accessible across all modes.”

“The Americans with Disabilities Act anniversary is cause for celebration—the landmark legislation has physically and literally opened doors for millions of people,” said Transportation Secretary and CEO Monica Tibbits-Nutt. “Accessible transportation is about fairness and equity, and when everyone can travel, our residents have the world opened to them.”

Milestones and Major Infrastructure Upgrades
This year alone, 10 MBTA stations—four on the Green Line D branch as well as Wellesley Square, West Medford, Franklin, Walpole, North Wilmington, and Winchester Center—have benefited from major accessibility upgrades with an eleventh—Natick Center—slated for completion in August, and 30 more to come over the next five years.

On July 16, MBTA, along with state and local leaders, celebrated the newly renovated, fully accessible Winchester Center Station on the Lowell Commuter Rail Line. Winchester Center Station was completely inaccessible and had not seen major repairs since the 1950s. The station closed for repairs in 2021, and the groundbreaking for construction began in 2022. The station has been partially open since September of 2024.

At Downtown Crossing, a major accessibility project is underway to install two new elevators, which will create the MBTA’s first fully accessible connection between the Red and Orange lines—a major milestone for riders.

Across the system, more than 400 bus stops have also been completely rebuilt over the last five years to improve accessibility, with 40 more stops planned to be upgraded this year. The MBTA bus fleet is 100 percent accessible, and the upcoming Type 10 Green Line “supercar” includes a 100 percent low-floor design.

Advancing Accessibility Through Innovation and Engagement
Other key projects include advancing hands-free fare gates; making it easier for passengers who are blind or low-vision to navigate the system with wayfinding technology; and scaling up, updating, and refreshing accessibility training for the frontline workforce.

MBTA’s RIDE paratransit service will soon launch a new transit management software, bringing improvements to routing efficiency and a fully revamped customer experience, featuring online and app-based trip booking and management.