The blog that started it all! Check out reviews of every bus route and train station in Boston, as well as ongoing reviews of the regional bus systems in Massachusetts and Rhode Island.
Recent Posts from Miles on the MBTA
RIPTA: 76 (Central Ave)
RIPTA's routes out of Pawtucket are definitely the sad stepchildren of the system. They generally get worse buses, they almost always have terrible schedules, and their ridership is often lower than the rest of the system. Does the 76 stack up to those expectations?...
Transit Tales: 70 Minutes in Attleboro
If there was ever one redeeming factor about the GATRA, it was that its buses could be reasonably trusted to arrive on time. I never had any doubt that their routes were at least reliable, and even if they were late, it was never more than five minutes or so....
M2C (Coolidge Corner)
So, did you know that a few night M2s run via Coolidge Corner? Yeah, I had no idea, either! I mean, who would suspect? It's just so unexpected that these few random M2s happen to take a vastly different route than their counterparts....
UMass Boston Shuttle: 1 (JFK/Umass – Campus Center)
Longtime readers will definitely have seen this one before - maybe even more than once. But hey, it hasn't gotten a proper review yet, so it's time to take our final look at the route and give it a definitive score! Time to take one final ride on the 1. The beautiful...
Hingham Shipyard
You'd think a new ferry terminal would be at least somewhat of a big deal, but the T apparently didn't think so - this place got practically no fanfare at all! That's why Sam and I had no idea to expect when we headed down to Hingham to see the new Hingham Shipyard...
UMass Boston Shuttle: 3 (Bayside – Campus Center)
Nathan and I had decided on a whim to ride the UMass shuttles as we were approaching JFK/Umass on a Red Line train. Five minutes later, we were scrambling over barriers in the Umass Bayside Lot trying to catch a 3 laying over at the shelter way on the far end of the...
212 (Quincy Center Station – North Quincy Station via Billings Road)
Time to finish off this 210/211/212 cluster in Quincy with its highest-numbered route, the, uh, 212. Like the other two routes, this one baffles me in its own unique way. Why? Keep reading! The bus coming into Quincy Center. We left Quincy Center and headed up Hancock...
210 (Quincy Center Station – North Quincy or Fields Corner Station via Hancock Street and Neponset Ave)
Don't you hate it when you have a connection to make, but the bus you're taking to that connection is late, so you miss the connection? Thanks, 210! (Okay, the Fields Corner traffic is really what's to blame, but I just needed a way to start this post.) Well,...
211 (Quincy Center Station – Squantum via Montclair and North Quincy Station)
Long-time readers may remember wayyyyyyyy back in 2014 when I rode the 211 for the first time. The reason I didn't review it then was because it was a Sunday, when the route cuts out a huge swath of its path from North Quincy to Quincy Center, following the...
M2 (Cambridge – HMS)
For anyone who rides the M2 regularly, it's incredibly easy to board. For anyone who doesn't...well, that's problematic. The M2 is a Longwood Medical Area shuttle that runs from Harvard to the LMA, and its fare system makes absolutely no sense. So, a Harvard ID allows...
Andover
We had five minutes until the scheduled arrival of the 4:27 train. I was taking pictures of Andover Station, while Jordan was across the street getting a drink at a convenience store. Suddenly, I heard that familiar bell - the train was coming early! What should I do?...
MVRTA: 32 (Andover)
For our final MVRTA trip for now, we're gonna head south of the "River Merrimack" into South Lawrence and Andover! We'll see dense areas! We'll see sparsely-populated areas! We shall delay no longer, for here is the 32! The bus at the Buckley Transportation Center....
MVRTA: 35 (Water Street)
Well, this is a nice change! After the craziness of the last route, it's nice to see an MVRTA bus that actually runs the same way inbound and outbound! Yes, today we're looking at the 35, travelling through the southwestern section of Lawrence. The bus at Buckley....
MVRTA: 34 (Prospect Hill)
The MVRTA's Lawrence routes have a certain style to them. The authority seems to like very loopy routes that take different streets going inbound and outbound. It makes for some very strange-looking maps, and the 34 is no exception. Plus, this one has deviations!...
MVRTA: Buckley Transportation Center
As we move away from the MWRTA for now, that "W" turns into a "V" and we enter a very different type of system. The bulk of the MVRTA is located in Lawrence, a city where people actually, you know, use the bus (sorry, MWRTA). And all of its routes there are...