Newton Mayor Decries MBTA Proposed Bus Cuts

NEWTON, MA — MBTA's proposed cuts to service will negatively impact Newton commuters, said Newton Mayor Ruthanne Fuller, who plans to petition the MBTA to rethink them.

"Without frequent public transit, reviving the economy becomes even more difficult," said Newton Mayor Ruthanne Fuller in a statement Tuesday night. "We need the MBTA to provide more service, not less."

On Monday, the MBTA revealed the extent of the cuts, which are being proposed amid a major drop in ridership because of the coronavirus pandemic and a $580 million budget shortfall. Ridership is at about 26 percent of what it was before the pandemic — 330,000 daily riders in October compared to 1.26 million per day in 2019.

Newton is served by seven stops on the “D” branch of the Green Line and three stops on the commuter rail Framingham-Worcester line. The MBTA runs five local bus routes and nine express bus routes through the city.

For commuter rail service, the MBTA is proposing to stop service at 9 p.m., stop weekend service beginning in January, and reduce the number of peak and midday service trips from 505 to 430. It is also proposing to end bus and subway service at midnight. It would also eliminate bus routes 52 and 505, completely and restructures or shortens several other routes because of low ridership.

All of this would begin sometime early next year.

"The proposed cuts will definitely impact transit riders in Newton," said Mayor Ruthanne Fuller. "While the MBTA expects to restore services eventually, in the meantime it will hurt employees, seniors, youngsters and those without access to cars. There will be a disproportionate impact on those with tight budgets. It will undermine our environmental goals, our ability to reduce congestion and the promise of transit oriented housing, retail, restaurants and offices."

Route 52 is the only bus that operates through the center of Newton - from Watertown Square to Dedham along Centre Street. Route 505 provides express bus service between Auburndale and West Newton and Boston via Lexington Street, Commonwealth Avenue, Washington Street and I-90.

It also includes restructuring or shortening several bus routes, including Routes 553, 554, 556 and 558, as well as the continued consolidation of Routes 501, 502, 503 and 504.

Fuller said she would advocate that some service along Routes 52 and 505 be maintained during this period, and ask that full service is restored once ridership returns.

The cuts come as business owners have lamented how difficult it is for employees who live outside of the city to commute to town.

It's also not clear whether accessibility work planned at Newton commuter rail stations and at the Newton Highlands Green Line Station will be postponed.

"I want to reassure our riders that these service changes are not permanent, do not include any fare changes, and will not take effect immediately," MBTA General Manager Steve Poftak said in a statement. "We are carrying out a comprehensive outreach process and encourage all members of the public to provide comments and feedback, as we want to hear from riders to help us identify and protect the services that support transit-critical populations and communities."

Newton will have a chance to tell transit leaders what they think on Nov. 17 during one of 11 virtual public meetings the MBTA is holding before its final vote Dec. 7.

The cuts are a contrast to the recent service boost Framingham-Worcester line commuters got when the "Heart to Hub" express trains began running again.

Jenna Fisher is a news reporter for Patch. Got a tip? She can be reached at Jenna.Fisher@patch.com or by calling 617-942-0474. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram (@ReporterJenna). Have a something you'd like posted on the Patch? Here's how .