How microtransit pays off in wages, medical savings

The next time a perennial Beacon Hill debate — how to divide transit dollars between the greater Boston core and the whole rest of the state — pops back up, those pushing to spend more in far-flung areas will have some extra ammunition. 

A new report out today from Transportation for Massachusetts examines three microtransit programs — think on-demand van services — in rural, car-dependent parts of the state, finding a return of $8 to $23 per dollar invested, depending on the program. State, local, grant and nonprofit dollars go into the programs, and economic benefits come from wages and employment that the trips make possible, savings versus operating a personal vehicle, and projected savings in the health care system from reliable, timely access to medical care.

T4M executive director Reggie Ramos says the programs are lifelines. 

"Too often, transportation conversations in Massachusetts focus on the MBTA, while rural communities have few reliable ways to reach health care, work and other basic needs,” Ramos said. 

The analysis, by the UMass Donahue Institute, looks way outside the T's service area. 

The biggest of the three programs studied, South County Connector in the Berkshires, provided almost 22,000 one-way trips last year, more than 6,000 of which connected riders with their work. Work trips through South County Connector supported more than $8 million in economic activity between 2024 and 2025, the report said. 

Almost all of the 1,123 microtransit trips offered by Helping Our Women on the Outer Cape were for health and wellness services, and riders also used microtransit services from the Hilltown Community Development Corporation to get to medical appointments or go on shopping runs.

Massachusetts has put up some millionaire's tax money for a grant program backing microtransit and "last-mile" transportation programs — $5 million in a spending bill Gov. Maura Healey signed in June, after $10 million last year. T4MA wants the state to keep investing in the community-based services and find a way to do so that lets the agencies plan for the long-term.

The group is also hoping to see a bill pass that would create a state commission to figure out a sustainable way to fund microtransit.

The legislation is sponsored by three lawmakers whose districts are served by microtransit programs  — Pittsfield Rep. Tricia Farley-Bouvier, Warren Rep. Todd Smola and Provincetown Sen. Julian Cyr. 

“When I hear equity in transportation, I get all salty about how much money goes to the MBTA and how much does not go into the rest of the state," Farley-Bouvier said at a microtransit forum last year. "If we just had a small percentage of that consistency and sustainability, we could transform our regions." 

The question is whether they can get their colleagues to hop on board. 

There’s now a microtransit service offering trips where I live, but I haven’t yet taken a trip. Have you called one for a ride? Tell me how it went at [email protected].

…Boston Mayor Michelle Wu is officially on Team Healey. The governor's reelection campaign announced the endorsement from Wu today. "I’m grateful for our work together — from a historic summer that delivered economic impact throughout our neighborhoods, to lowering costs, building more housing, keeping residents safe, and expanding opportunity throughout the Commonwealth," Wu said in a statement. It's not necessarily a surprise that Wu would back her fellow Democrat in the gubernatorial race, but Healey and Wu aren't always aligned politically. They took opposite sides in two state Senate primaries this year. And Healey, a former Boston resident, stayed out of it as Wu faced a challenge from Josh Kraft last year, saying ahead of the September 2025 preliminary that she’d “let the voters decide” and see what happened…

…Republican U.S. Senate candidate John Deaton took his message to Maryland Wednesday, sending a mobile billboard truck to Sen. Ed Markey's Chevy Chase address to turn up the volume on his ongoing debate challenge. The truck, bearing a picture of Markey on a "Missing" poster, also circled the Dirksen Senate Office Building in Washington, D.C., according to the Deaton campaign…

…Hawaii Sen. Mazie Hirono will be in Boston Friday to speak at a gala hosted by the Asian Community Fund at the Boston Fund. Hirono, a Democrat who's also represented her state in Congress, became the first AAPI woman elected to the U.S. Senate when she won her 2012 race. Organizers expect the sold-out event at the Westin Copley Plaza, emceed by Shirley Leung of the Boston Globe and Jim Braude of GBH News, to raise more than $850,000 to support the fund's grants and programs…

…A recent study from the Fiscal Alliance Foundation that found a natural gas pipeline capacity expansion known as Project Beacon would yield ratepayer savings caught the eye of a Wall Street Journal columnist, appearing in the weekly "All Things with Kim Strassel" newsletter. Strassel asked, "Will Massachusetts Democrats get on board?" 

9:00 | Boston Fed President & CEO Susan Collins participates in a "Federal Reserve Perspectives: Regional Insights on Rural Economic Conditions" panel discussion at the Investing in Rural America Conference, hosted by the Richmond Fed, in partnership with the Federal Reserve System and Rural LISC. Fed presidents plan to share perspectives on regional trends, workforce dynamics, and the economic challenges and opportunities in rural places | Livestream

9:00 | Treasurer Goldberg speaks on a panel during the second day of the Council of Institutional Investors' three-day fall conference | Westin Boston Seaport District, 425 Summer St., Boston

9:45 | Reps. Peisch and Fiola join researchers, clinicians and patient advocates at a women's health symposium on pancreatic cancer co-hosted by MassBio and the Caucus of Women Legislators. Legislation that aims to reduce incidence and death from pancreatic cancer (H 2432 / S 1484) is a caucus priority | MassBioHub, Cambridge Room, 700 Technology Square, Cambridge

10:00 | Division of Insurance hosts a listening session on out-of-network costs, in response to Gov. Healey's call for regulators to establish default payment rates | Access

11:00 | Senate meets | Senate Chamber

11:00 | House meets in an informal session | House Chamber

11:30 | Gov. Healey and Mayor Wu visit Otis Elementary School for a celebration of retrofits and renovations funded with $5.8 million from the city and a $1.5 million grant from the Mass. Clean Energy Center's Green School Works program. House Ways and Means Chair Michlewitz, Superintendent Mary Skipper, Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Tepper, and others attend. Healey and Wu plan a joint press availability after the program | Otis Elementary, 189 Paris St., East Boston

12:00 | Boston Senior Home Care honors Brian Dempsey and Michael Curry at its gala luncheon. Dempsey is former House Ways and Means Committee chair and president of the Dempsey Associates lobbying firm, and Curry is president and CEO of the Massachusetts League of Community Health Centers | Four Seasons, 200 Boylston St., Boston

5:00 | Republican gubernatorial candidate Mike Minogue holds a meet-and-greet event alongside congressional candidate Tyler Macallister | Merrill's on the Waterfront, 36 Homer's Wharf, New Bedford

5:30 | Senate President Spilka receives the MetroWest Legal Services "Legislator of the Year" award | Maynard

6:00 | Rep. Donato sponsors an event kicking off Italian Heritage Month | Great Hall

6:00 | MassDOT hosts a virtual design public hearing for the bridge replacement on Quarry Road over Cushman Brook in Becket | More Info and Register

7:00 | Republican gubernatorial nominee Mike Minogue holds an "autumn evening" fundraiser, featuring music, hors d'oeuvres and a cash bar. Tickets are $50 per person | White's of Westport, 66 State Road, Westport

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SHIELD LAW TAKES FIRE: | Alabama, Arkansas and Louisiana filed a lawsuit with the U.S. Supreme Court challenging abortion shield laws in Massachusetts, California and New York. The three GOP-led states argue that the laws protecting medical providers from out-of-state investigations counter the sovereign rights of states with abortion bans. | The Hill

THE 72 PERCENT: Lawmakers' pushback to a probe from state Auditor Diana DiZoglio has not swayed voters who supported a ballot question authorizing her to audit the Legislature. The same percentage that voted for the question in 2024 said in a recent MassINC poll that they back that decision. | CommonWealth Beacon

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SPRINGFIELD’S SAY: A small piece of the land eyed a new Springfield courthouse is owned by the city, not the developers who submitted the winning bid for the $2 billion project. Some Springfield leaders including Mayor Domenic Sarno vocally opposed the state's pick, and the city could end up with more leverage if the controversial project needs zoning approvals. | Boston Globe

STICKING AROUND: Lawrence Mayor Brian DePeña plans to serve out his full term as he faces 26 state and federal criminal charges, saying the federal case alleging COVID loan fraud relates to his business activities outside of City Hall. | Boston Herald

CHIEF CONCERNS: The Methuen City Council plans to vote next week on asking U.S. Attorney Leah Foley to reopen an investigation into former police Chief Joseph Solomon, who pleaded guilty earlier this month to 17 state charges including perjury and promoting unqualified officers.| Boston 25

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