Leaders of the Worcester Regional Transit Authority voted Thursday to keep its buses free through June 2025. The bus system has not charged riders since the pandemic began in the spring of 2020.
Passengers board a free fare WRTA bus at Union Station in Worcester. This is an excerpt from WBUR's daily morning newsletter, WBUR Today. If you like what you read and want it in your inbox,Leaders of the Worcester Regional Transit Authority have moved to keep its buses free for a fifth year. The bus system — which— has not charged riders since the pandemic began in the spring of 2020.
Businesses are fans, too: Karen Pelletier, the executive vice president of the Greater Worcester Chamber of Commerce, told WBUR’s Dan Guzman keeping the bus system free “seems like a no-brainer.” “Transportation and access to jobs is a critical piece of being able to meet employment demand,” Pelletier said.to make up for forgone fare revenue, which accounted for around 9% of the agency’s operating budget before the pandemic.
What can they do about it? State law prevents the city from simply waiving the bills or even lowering the 14% annual interest rate charged on balances. For now, Somerville is offering payment plans while the cityMassachusetts officials have identified 50 lithium-ion battery fires across the state in the last six months, thanks to a new tracking tool. That’s a marked increase compared to the previous four years, when the state averaged less than 20 per year.
The most common culprits: Nine fires involved micro-mobility devices like e-scooters, e-bikes and hoverboards; eight involved laptops and another eight were due to cell phones and tablets.. State regulators signed off yesterday on 94 new hospital beds for Massachusetts General Hospital, bringing the state’s largest hospital to a total of about 1,000 beds. The additional beds are part of the hospital’s $2 billion expansion in Boston’s West End, slated to open in 2027.
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