October 15, 2026
The Boston Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) votes to approve this work program.
Not listed in federal fiscal year (FFY) 2027 UPWP
Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA)
Principal: Rosemary McCarron
Manager: Sophie Fox
MBTA Contract
Schedule: 36 months from notice to proceed
Schedule and budget details are shown in Exhibits 1 and 2, respectively.
This study is supported in full with non-MPO funding. Committing MPO staff to this project will not impinge on the quality or timeliness of MPO-funded work.
As an agency that receives federal funds, the MBTA is subject to Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which protects people from discrimination based on race, color, and national origin. The MBTA’s Service and Fare Change Equity Policy1 documents how the agency evaluates the impacts of proposed fare and major service changes on minority and low-income populations relative to other groups in compliance with the Federal Transit Administration’s (FTA) Title VI Circular 4702.1B.2
According to the Service and Fare Change Equity Policy, the MBTA must evaluate the impact of major service changes. The MBTA has requested that MPO staff update and maintain a generalized methodology to determine whether a proposed service change meets the definition of a major service change and to complete service equity analyses when the major service change threshold is met. MPO staff will then apply this methodology as the MBTA develops service change proposals.
This work will update and maintain the existing methodology for evaluating service changes and evaluate proposed MBTA service changes for equity impacts.
MPO staff will coordinate with representatives of the MBTA throughout methodology development. MBTA staff will provide direction on this work and give feedback to MPO staff on the preliminary results of the analyses. MPO staff will coordinate with the MBTA to describe the service changes and to report results.
MPO staff have developed an approach for evaluating service changes. The purpose of this task is to make sure that the process is maintained and updated based on new data and any policy changes.
For major service changes, MPO staff will evaluate revenue vehicle hours and access to the service based on guidance in the MBTA Service and Fare Change Equity Policy. For each service equity analysis, MPO staff will prepare summary results of proposed service changes and document these results in a memorandum.
SEA technical memoranda
MPO staff will perform annual lookback analysis to understand the cumulative impact of both major and minor service changes on revenue vehicle hours and access to MBTA service. For each lookback analysis, MPO staff will prepare summary results of proposed service changes and document these results in a memorandum.
Lookback technical memoranda
|
Task |
Quarter | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
|
1.
Project Coordination
|
From Quarter 1.0, Week 1 to Quarter 12.75, Week 4.
|
||||||||||
|
2.
Maintain Data and Analysis Methods
|
From Quarter 1.0, Week 1 to Quarter 12.75, Week 4.
|
||||||||||
|
3.
Perform Service Equity Analyses
|
From Quarter 2.0, Week 1 to Quarter 5.5, Week 3.
Deliverable
A
Delivered by Quarter 5.5, Week 3.
|
||||||||||
|
4.
Perform Annual Lookback Analyses
|
From Quarter 3.0, Week 1 to Quarter 4.75, Week 4.
Deliverable
B
Delivered by Quarter 4.75, Week 4.
From Quarter 7.0, Week 1 to Quarter 8.75, Week 4.
Deliverable
B
Delivered by Quarter 8.75, Week 4.
From Quarter 11.0, Week 1 to Quarter 12.75, Week 4.
Deliverable
B
Delivered by Quarter 12.75, Week 4.
|
|
Task |
Person-Weeks by Pay Grade |
Direct
Salary |
Overhead
(120.3%) |
Total
Cost |
||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G-8 | G-6 | Total | ||||
|
1.
Project Coordination
|
1.0 | 3.0 | 3.9 | $6,809 | $8,191 | $15,000 |
|
2.
Maintain Data and Analysis Methods
|
1.0 | 8.7 | 9.7 | $15,887 | $19,113 | $35,000 |
|
3.
Perform Service Equity Analyses
|
0.5 | 10.9 | 11.4 | $18,157 | $21,843 | $40,000 |
|
4.
Perform Annual Lookback Analyses
|
1.8 | 12.0 | 13.8 | $22,696 | $27,304 | $50,000 |
|
Total
|
4.3 | 34.5 | 38.8 | $63,550 | $76,450 | $140,000 |
1 Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA), “MBTA Service and Fare Change Equity Policy,” October 24, 2023. https://cdn.mbta.com/sites/default/files/2023-10/2023-10-Service-Fare-Change-Equity-Policy-English-Accessible.pdf.
2 Federal Transit Administration (FTA), “Title VI Requirements and Guidelines for Federal Transit Administration Recipients,” Circular 4702.1B, October 1, 2012. https://www.transit.dot.gov/regulations-and-guidance/fta-circulars/title-vi-requirements-and-guidelines-federal-transit.
Civil Rights Notice to the Public
Welcome. Bem Vinda. Bienvenido. Akeyi. 欢迎. 歡迎
You are invited to participate in our transportation planning process, free from discrimination. The Boston Region Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) is committed to nondiscrimination in all activities and complies with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, or national origin (including limited English proficiency). Related federal and state nondiscrimination laws prohibit discrimination on the basis of age, sex, disability, and additional protected characteristics.
For additional information or to file a civil rights complaint, visit www.bostonmpo.org/mpo_non_discrimination.
To request this information in a different language or format, please contact:
Boston Region MPO Title VI Specialist
10 Park Plaza, Suite 2150
Boston, MA 02116
Phone: 857.702.3700
Email: civilrights@ctps.org
For people with hearing or speaking difficulties, connect through the state MassRelay service, www.mass.gov/massrelay. Please allow at least five business days for your request to be fulfilled.