Somerville issues free MBTA passes to low-income residents
Somerville is launching a pilot program to distribute 500 fully-subsidized MBTA passes to low-income households, city officials said Tuesday.
The program is in partnership with the Community Action Agency of Somerville, city officials said in a statement. The program is “the latest of several initiatives the City has undertaken recently to deliver economic relief to residents and expand access to sustainable and equitable transportation options.”
City officials said the program is funded by the American Rescue Plan Act, the $1.9 trillion economic stimulus bill signed into law in 2021 to help the nation recover from the pandemic.
Through Somerville’s program, free 12-month MBTA transit passes will be distributed to qualifying individuals on a first-come, first-served basis, city officials said. The pilot program is among the first “means-tested” transit pass programs in Massachusetts.
City officials said the program “fills a critical gap” for low-income residents who don’t qualify for other transit benefit programs. The average household in Somerville spends 12% of their income on transportation-related costs.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 10.4% of the city’s population lives in poverty, and 50.8% of Somerville Public Schools students are considered low-income.
And while young people and older adults, for example, may be eligible for the MBTA Youth Pass Program or the Senior Charlie Card Program, while in Massachusetts, there are very few reduced-fare options for people between the ages of 26 and 65, city officials said.
“In Massachusetts, public transportation has become cost-prohibitive for too many residents, so Somerville is stepping up to the plate,” Mayor Katjana Ballantyne said in a statement. “No one should be forced to choose between buying a T pass or paying for groceries, and low-income riders have little recourse. When we cover the cost of fares, we remove a barrier to ridership and deliver economic relief to those in our community who need it most. I’m grateful to CAAS for their partnership on this initiative, and I hope we can inspire similar programs to take shape across the region.”
Over the past year, Somerville has fully funded more than 4,000 transit passes for low- and moderate-income Somerville residents, students, families, and workers, officials said.
In September, the Somerville Public Schools distributed 2,000 M7 Transit Passes to all students in grades 7 through 12, up from 1,400 passes the previous year. The city also funded 1,200 MBTA passes for low-income parents and guardians of Somerville Public Schools students using ARPA funds and distributed more than 640 passes to teachers and staff.
Anyone who either is currently enrolled in a public benefits program, such as SNAP or MassHealth, or who earns up to twice the federal poverty level and does not currently qualify for an existing free or reduced-fare pass is eligible to apply.
Applications are now open at caasomerville.org/transit-program. For more information, call 617-599-4185 or go to somervillema.gov/transitbenefits.
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