Photo: Rep. Ayanna Pressley Press Office
BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) — Massachusetts lawmakers have reintroduced the Freedom to Move Act to support fare-free transit.
Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley, Senator Edward Markey, and Mayor Michelle Wu recently announced their continued efforts to fund public transportation.
"Free public transportation is about giving our communities freedom. Freedom to access healthcare, childcare, groceries, their workplace, their school, freedom to travel," said Markey.
The trio asked Congress to authorize $25 billion in federal spending over five years to expand free public transportation nationwide.
Pressley and Markey took a trip on the 28 bus line at Ruggles Station in Roxbury — a fare-free route piloted by the City of Boston to highlight the importance of establishing public transportation for the public good. According to Markey, when routes 23, 28, and 29 went fare-free, they saw a 35% increase in ridership, more than double the increase of any other MBTA bus lines.
"More riders mean fewer cars on our roads, less congestion and consternation, and traffic and lowered greenhouse gas emissions from cars idling on our highways, while also giving more people in our communities access to their city," Pressley said.
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Low-income families face the biggest financial burdens when it comes to public transportation, spending nearly 30% of their household income on the expense.
“Fare-free transit in Boston shows what’s possible when we prioritize investing in our communities and ensuring our public transportation system puts our residents and families first," Wu said in a statement.
Two other Massachusetts transit systems in Worcester and Merrimack Valley have among the longest-running and most successful fare-free transit programs in the nation.
WBZ NewsRadio’s Mike Macklin (@mikemacklinwbz) reports.