The history of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) and its predecessors spans two centuries, starting with one of the oldest railroads in the United States. Development of mass transportation both followed existing economic and population patterns, and helped shape those patterns.
Privately owned mass transit in the Boston area evolved from the colonial period into the early 1900s, including ferries, steamships, steam commuter railroads, horse and electric streetcars, elevated railways, and subways. Many streetcar lines were consolidated into the West End Street Railway in 1887. This was merged into the Boston Elevated Railway in 1897, which that same year opened the first subway in the United States (the Tremont Street subway). Subway construction was funded by city taxpayers, and overseen by the new Boston Transit Commission. As automobiles started causing financial problems for mass transit operators, the MTA took over the BER in 1947 and began replacing inner commuter rail service with rapid transit expansions. The MTA started running ferry services in 1963. The MBTA replaced the MTA in 1964, expanding the service area to fully include the area's commuter rail services, all of which had to be taken over by the government or discontinued for financial reasons. Paratransit services began in 1977.
Except for the Mattapan Line and some portions of the Green Line, all streetcars were replaced by buses. The MBTA benefitted from a political turn away from highway construction in the 1970s, which resulted in relocation of part of the Orange Line. In the following decades, demand for mass transit services increased as the population migration out of the urban core toward the car-centric suburbs reversed, and overall population kept increasing.
The agency continued expanding and reactivating commuter rail services, and expanding rapid transit into the late 20th and early 21st century. The Big Dig (1991-2006) resulted in the creation of the Silver Line subway-busline and other promised expansions to mitigate the increased pollution caused by increased highway capacity (required after a Clean Air Act lawsuit by the Conservation Law Foundation). In 2000, the state changed the MBTA financing mechanism from habitually paying expenses in arrears to getting a fixed budget: 1% of state retail sales (out of a total 5% statewide sales tax at the time) plus assessments from cities and towns in the service area. Partly due to an increase in ecommerce, sales tax revenues were lower than expected, and because debt service for the Big Dig transit projects had been allocated to the MBTA, the agency experienced financial problems that required occasional supplemental state funding. It became a division of the newly consolidated MassDOT in 2009. During the term of Governor Charlie Baker (2015-2023), deferred subway system maintenance from the period of austerity became problematic. A 2015 snowstorm shut down two subway lines, resulting in temporary appointment of a Fiscal and Management Control Board. During the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, an accumulation of high-profile safety incidents resulted in a Federal Transit Administration investigation in 2022, and sudden safety-related service cuts.
Early mass transit Mass transit in Boston, Massachusetts began as a family-owned and operated ferry about the time of the founding of Boston, in around 1630. Ground transportation started in Boston with a private stagecoach operation in 1793.
Steam railroads
The steam locomotive became practical for mass transportation in the 1810s and came to the United States in the 1820s. Three railroads were built from Boston to other industrial cities in 1834–35: the Boston and Lowell Railroad, Boston and Worcester Railroad, and Boston and Providence Railroad. There were soon eight intercity mainlines and numerous branches radiating from Boston. They were consolidated under three railroads in the last decades of the 19th century. Cuts from the 1910s to the 1950s ended service on many branches, but seven mainlines and several branches still had passenger service when the MBTA was formed in 1964.
Boston and Maine Railroad Four of the current lines were part of the Boston and Maine Railroad (B&M): The Newburyport/Rockport Line descends from the Eastern Railroad, which opened from East Boston to in 1838. It was extended to in 1839, to in 1840, and eventually to Portland, Maine in 1842. The entry into Boston was built in 1854. The Gloucester Branch was built from to in 1847 and to in 1861. After a decades-long rivalry, the BM leased the Eastern in 1884. Passenger service on the Eastern Route mainline was cut back to Newburyport in 1965. The Haverhill Line descends from the Andover and Wilmington Railroad, which opened from to in 1836. It was extended to in 1837, to Exeter, New Hampshire, in 1840, and to Portland in 1843. A cutoff between Wilmington Junction and Boston was built in 1845, giving the B&M its own route into Boston. The Western Route became the spine of the B&M system. Passenger service was cut back to Dover, New Hampshire, in 1965 and to in 1967. The Lowell Line descends from the Boston and Lowell Railroad (B&L), which opened in 1835. It was extended northwards by the Nashua and Lowell Railroad in 1838 and the Concord Railroad in 1842; both were later leased by the B&L. The B&M leased the B&L in 1887. Passenger service was cut back to in 1967. The Fitchburg Line descends from the Fitchburg Railroad, which opened in phases from West Cambridge to in 1843–1845. It acquired the previously-built Charlestown Railroad, which ran between West Cambridge and Charlestown, in 1844. A short extension into Boston opened in 1848. The Vermont and Massachusetts Railroad was extended west to Millers Falls and north to Brattleboro, Vermont, in 1851, and west from Millers Falls to Troy, New York, in 1876 via the Hoosac Tunnel. The B&M leased the Fitchburg in 1900. Passenger service was cut back to Fitchburg in 1960. The B&M system also included three lines closed during the MBTA era – the Woburn Branch (1981), Lexington Branch (1977), and Central Massachusetts Branch (1971) – and numerous lines closed prior to 1964.
New York Central Railroad One current line was part of the New York Central Railroad, which merged into the Penn Central Transportation Company in 1968: The Boston and Worcester Railroad opened from Boston to in stages in 1834–35. The Western Railroad opened in stages from Worcester to Albany, New York, in 1839–1841. The two railroads merged in 1867 as the Boston and Albany Railroad (B&A), which was acquired by the New York Central in 1900. Several B&A branch lines closed prior to 1964. The Highland branch was closed in 1958 for conversion to a streetcar line, now the Green Line D branch. The freight-only Grand Junction Railroad, formerly owned by the B&A, is used by the MBTA for equipment moves.
New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad Seven of the current lines were part of the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad, which merged into Penn Central in 1969. Four were operated when the MBTA was formed: The Providence/Stoughton Line descends from the Boston and Providence Railroad (B&P), which opened between Boston and Providence in 1834–35. The New York, Providence and Boston Railroad (NYP&B) opened southwest from Providence in 1837, with a short connector into downtown Providence opened in 1848. The Stoughton Branch opened from to in 1845. A new routing between Attleboro and Providence opened in 1847. The Old Colony Railroad acquired the B&P in 1888. The New Haven acquired an NYP&B successor in 1892 and the Old Colony in 1893, using the NYP&B and the B&P as part of its New York–Boston mainline (now part of the Northeast Corridor). The Fairmount Line descends from the Midland Railroad, which opened from Boston to via in 1855. It operated intermittently under several owners including the Boston and New York Central Railroad and Boston, Hartford and Erie Railroad until resuming full operation in 1867. The Boston, Hartford and Erie Railroad became part of the New York and New England Railroad (NY&NE) in 1875. The New Haven acquired an NY&NE descendant in 1898 and rerouted through trains onto the BP north of Readville. Boston–Readville service ended in 1944 and did not resume until the MBTA era. The Franklin/Foxboro Line descends from the Norfolk County Railroad, which opened between (on the B&P Dedham Branch) and Blackstone in 1849. It became part of the Boston and New York Central Railroad in 1853 and used the Midland Railroad (when operating) as its Boston entry after 1855. After several short-term operators, it became part of the Boston, Hartford and Erie Railroad in 1867. The New Haven cut back service to in 1966. The Franklin– segment of the current line originated in 1882 as part of the Milford and Woonsocket Railroad, which was leased by the NY&NE in 1887. Passenger service was intermittent after 1920 and was discontinued in 1940; it did not resume until the MBTA era. The – segment of the current line opened as part of the Mansfield and Framingham Railroad in 1870 and became part of the Old Colony in 1879. Passenger service was discontinued in 1933 and did not resume until the MBTA era. The Needham Line descends from two originally-unrelated branch lines. The B&P opened its West Roxbury Branch between and via in 1849. The Charles River Railroad opened from to Needham in 1853, using the Highand branch to reach Boston. It was extended to Woonsocket, Rhode Island, in 1861–1863 and became part of the Boston, Hartford and Erie Railroad in 1865. The New Haven opened a cutoff from to West Roxbury in 1906. Service north of ended in 1932. Service south of Needham Junction (the Millis Branch) ended in 1967. The New Haven ended all service on the Old Colony Division – the former Old Colony Railroad lines that were not part of the B&P – prior to formation of the MBTA. Service to Fall River, New Bedford, and Taunton via ended in 1958. Service via Quincy ended in 1959, including three lines that were reactivated by the MBTA: The Kingston Line descends from the original Old Colony Railroad, which opened from Boston to Plymouth in 1845. It underwent several mergers, again becoming the Old Colony Railroad in 1872. The Middleborough/Lakeville Line descends from the Fall River Railroad, which opened from to Fall River in 1846. It merged with the Old Colony in 1854. Passenger service between and Myricks in 1931 and south of Myricks in 1958. The segments opening as part of South Coast Rail include the East Taunton–New Bedford portion of the New Bedford and Taunton Railroad (opened 1840, acquired by the Old Colony in 1879, passenger service ended 1958), the Middleborough and Taunton Railroad (opened 1856, acquired by the Old Colony in 1879, passenger service ended 1927), and the Myricks–Fall River portion of the Fall River Railroad. The Greenbush Line descends from the South Shore Railroad, which opened from to in 1849. The Duxbury and Cohasset Railroad extended the line to South Duxbury in 1871 and in 1874. The Old Colony acquired the two lines in 1877 and 1878. Passenger service south of ended in 1939. Two New Haven lines closed in 1967 – the Dedham Branch and the Millis Branch. A number of other branches, particularly on the Old Colony Division, closed prior to the MBTA era. The Shawmut Branch and part of the Milton Branch were converted to a streetcar line and rapid transit extension (now the Mattapan Line and part of the Red Line) in 1926–1929.
Boston, Revere Beach and Lynn Railroad