Welcome to the Birthplace of the American Revolution—and of American Public Transportation!

General Manager and CEO
Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority

On behalf of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA), our Board of Directors, and the dedicated staff who deliver service to our riders every day, we are honored to host you at this year’s APTA TRANSform.

APTA TRANSform provides public transportation professionals, policymakers, board members, government agencies, manufacturers, suppliers, and consultants the opportunity to gather and explore the many challenges and opportunities facing our industry, promote best practices, and plan for the future of public transportation.

Across our nation and globally, transit agencies are facing a shared reality: We are emerging from a pandemic-era ridership shift while also modernizing legacy infrastructures, addressing workforce challenges, and managing cost escalations.

At the MBTA, we are building a better T, delivering safe and more frequent service with increasing reliability by investing in our workforce, and accelerating critical infrastructure work while modernizing our infrastructure and fleet.

Some of our recent accomplishments include:

• Completing in 14 months an ambitious $227M systemwide Track Improvement Program to repair infrastructure across our entire subway system, including state-of-good-repair work and full-depth track replacements to provide longer-term system reliability, reducing the percentage of tracks under speed restriction from 26 to zero percent, and returning an estimated 90 -minutes of daily commuting time to riders.
• Launching a new Commuter Rail line, which required constructing nearly 30 miles of additional track, two new layover facilities, and six new Commuter Rail stations.
• Expanding access to reduced fares across all modes for income–eligible riders—a meaningful progression toward fare equity. This initiative unlocks affordability for residents across the MBTA service area.
• Implementing contactless payments onboard MBTA buses, trolleys, and at gated subway stations.
• Rebuilding in-house capabilities with a focus on our employees. This effort has led to improved morale and improved training and attractiveness of working at the MBTA. With greater interest and reduced attrition, we have increased our employee headcount by nearly 20 percent to more than 8,000 employees, reflecting a shift in culture and our commitment to building a transit system our riders deserve and expect: people moving and serving people.

And we are building for the future. With the support of the Healy/Driscoll Administration, the Massachusetts Legislature, our Board of Directors and workforce, and the public, we continue to build momentum and seek innovative solutions to deliver meaningful results with continued track improvements, fleet modernization, signal upgrades, and station enhancements. We are making investments to better serve our communities today, supporting economic growth and quality of life as we rebuild a best-in-class transit system that will meet the needs for future generations.

At the MBTA, our work is never done. We challenge ourselves every day to do more, to deliver more, to be innovative, and to maintain safety as a priority.

Thank you to APTA for bringing TRANSform to Boston. The entire MBTA workforce looks forward to building on our relationships to further promote the benefits of public transportation for the communities we serve and for all who visit, including you.

We hope you enjoy your stay and find time to visit again. Nothing quite compares to September in Massachusetts with its gorgeous weather and the start of the fall foliage season, but all four seasons here have so much to offer!