Here’s how $2.2M in federal funding will make your MBTA bus ride safer
Your next bus ride on the T could run a little more smoothly thanks to a $2.2 million infusion of federal cash aimed at boosting safety and reducing crashes.
The money through the U.S. Department of Transportation's "Safe Streets and Roads For All" program will allow the T to install what it described as "collision-avoidance" technology on up to 160 buses across its system.
Up to 40% of the T's passengers travel by bus, Phil Eng, the state's interim transportation secretary, said in a statement.
The grant money "further enhances the safety of our passengers, workforce, pedestrians, cyclists, motorists and the communities that we pass through. It's a win for everyone as we continue to deliver even more frequent services that makes transit the preferred choice of travel," Eng, who's still pulling double-duty as the T's general manager, said.
The buses equipped with this technology often operate in dense urban environments, which "[makes] these improvements even more important," the agency said in its statement.
The MBTA will test the tech, which includes sensors and backup cameras, at its Albany Street and Lynn bus garages "before considering a broader, system-wide rollout."
Bus riders across the region will "benefit from this new technology to help avoid crashes and keep people safe in communities across our state," Gov. Maura Healey said in the statement. The Democrat credited the "strong advocacy" from the state's Capitol Hill delegation.
In 2024, the MBTA won a $2.1 million award under the same federal program to retrofit so-called "fixed-route" buses with similar technology, the agency said.
The latest round of funding expands the technology's footprint while continuing the final stages of procurement and installation of the 2024 award, the agency said.
"Each dollar counts, and this is about using every tool in our policy toolkit to ensure that as our bus network grows, it becomes fundamentally safer for the communities we serve," Lynsey Heffernan, the MBTA's policy and strategic planning chief, said.
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