Boston is a world-class city. Each year, the city receives around 23 million tourists, along with people moving from all over the world to Boston to get an education, advance their careers, and build their lives. Yet, for years, the city has struggled with a subpar transit system—the MBTA, or simply “the T.” Don’t get me wrong: the MBTA maintains a sprawling subway system, with 157 stations across Boston Proper (not including the 137 commuter train stations and 1100 buses). On paper, the T is an excellent system, but in practice, it is burdened with slow zones, infrastructure issues, and dated trains.
When I first came to Boston from Michigan, I was amazed by the T subway system. My hometown’s barely functioning public transit system consisted of eight bus lines running about ten trips per day. I was nowhere near a big city with a subway system, so living just above the expansive T system was an exciting adventure.
However, as I realized the issues with the T, its novelty wore off. The disillusionment started this past October while riding the Green Line to meet my grandparents in Boston’s North End. What was supposed to be a 20-minute ride turned into a 40-minute ride, leaving me late for dinner and frustrated with the Green Line’s snail pace. I wondered why such issues persisted in a system with over 700,000 daily users. Annoyed, I began to research the underlying issues, eventually finding the Track Improvement Program.
Launched in 2023, the Track Improvement Program aimed to eliminate the 191 speed restrictions across the subway system. The speed restrictions were causing delays across the system (including for me back in Oct.). I found out that many riders on the Green Line, for example, often faced crawl-speed commutes, with travel times sometimes doubling during peak hours and where walking beats the pace of the T. So, with the support of Gov. Maura Healey, the MBTA set out to change this.
Even with this program, 36 percent of the Green Line still faced speed restrictions in September 2024. However, thanks to the hard work of construction crews and city leaders, the Track Improvement Program officially concluded on Dec. 23, 2024, with Governor Healey speaking and thanking T users and workers for their patience. Signage at the completion event boldly stated, “So long slow zones.” This event marked the first time in 20 years that the T was slow zone-free, and there is hope that the T can remain this way.
The Track Improvement Program is just one of the many programs that Boston and Massachusetts have established to improve the MBTA. Another group of projects, under the Capital Investment Plan 2025-2029 (CIP) umbrella, is a $16.7 billion investment in transport infrastructure. The Massachusetts Department of Transportation approved the CIP in July 2024 for the next five years of infrastructure improvements. Most of this will go towards improving the MBTA system as a whole. This investment includes multiple significant projects, such as redesigning the bus route system, purchasing 102 new green line trains, and expanding subway lines, among dozens of other projects listed on the MBTA website.
Beyond reducing commute times, current and future investments in the MBTA also address two other pressing issues: Boston’s infamous traffic congestion and the city’s sustainability goals. Boston ranks among the worst cities in the country for traffic, with CNBC listing it as the fourth worst in 2024. The best way to take cars off the streets is through public transportation investment. With more people using the MBTA, traffic on roadways will be eased. Boston is making this future a reality by investing in MBTA safety, efficiency, timeliness, and speed, all to make the system more appealing to users.
Due to Americans’ car dependance, the transportation industry produces more carbon emissions than any other sector in the U.S. Initiatives like the CIP can help reduce Boston’s emissions by decreasing the need for driving in and around the city while also supporting Boston’s progressive lawmakers and their climate goals. As cities worldwide look to lower carbon emissions, they can look to Boston’s efforts to modernize the MBTA and promote clean, safe public transit as a model for sustainable development.
With the elimination of slow zones and modernized trains among many other improvements, Boston’s public transportation system is entering a bold, new chapter. While these improvements are promising, Boston and Massachusetts governments must ensure consistent funding and maintenance to prevent the recurrence of old issues. If the MBTA maintains its system, the future of Boston transportation looks bright. As a freshman without a car, I am thrilled to take advantage of the upgraded system that connects Harvard to the vibrant heart of Boston.
Kalvin Frank ’28 (kfrank@college.harvard.edu) is excited to take the newly-improved T into Boston.