The three free buses are the 23, 28, and 29 routes, which run through parts of Dorchester, Mattapan, and Roxbury. City officials say half of the riders on the routes are low income and ridership overall is high. The officials said Route 28 ridership is at 102 percent of pre-COVID levels, while the Route 23 is at 94 percent and the Route 29 is at 64 percent.
Wu to pay $8.4m to extend fare free buses 2 more years
Posted inGambling
Mass. Gaming Commission looks to study sex trafficking in casinos
With casino gambling booming, state regulators are looking to pursue a study assessing the influence of the expansion of gaming on sex trafficking in Massachusetts.
Posted inOpinion
Holding a mirror up to our stereotypes
The new film “American Fiction” is not merely a piece of entertainment; it is a profound commentary on the state of our cultural and media landscapes.
Posted inEducation
Study says state faces growing teacher diversity challenge if action isn’t taken
Massachusetts has made strides in its effort to increase teacher diversity, but the K-12 student population is growing more diverse at a much faster rate.
Posted inState Government
Tax revenues kept sliding in January
Revenue Department officials said revenues in January came in 6.8 percent, or $263 million, below what had been forecasted for the month. For the first seven months of the fiscal year, revenues were 1.2 percent off forecasted levels.
Posted inEnergy
Utilities dig into geothermal systems in race to decarbonize
THE GROUND BENEATH Massachusetts is key to a relatively new strategy to decarbonize the state’s building stock within the next decade. Deep beneath Framingham, Lowell, and Boston, pipes will exchange […]
Posted inThe Codcast
National Grid digs into geothermal
This week on The Codcast, National Grid experts Owen Brady-Traczyk and Bill Foley join CommonWealth Beacon’s Jennifer Smith to discuss two pilot programs bringing networked geothermal heating and cooling systems to Massachusetts.
Posted inOpinion
Before making community college free, we must reckon with their role
Before we go too far down the road of embracing some form of free community college, we need a conversation among political leaders, business leaders, and community college leaders about the role we need our community colleges to play in our state and regional economies, and the resources required to enable them to play that role.
Posted inEducation
Short takes: Newton lawmakers silent on teachers strike
One might think the Newton teachers strike is the kind of pressing issue that the city’s state lawmakers would speak out about. Think again.
Posted inOpinion
Newton leaders and residents made their own bed
Striking Newton teachers deserve more money, and the city would have it available to pay them if its leaders had not been so hostile to revenue-generating development over the years.
Posted inCourts
O’Brien’s lawyer says he’s ‘unaware’ of probe behind subpoena report
A lawyer for suspended cannabis regulator Shannon O’Brien said he’s not aware of any federal investigation into his client and has not the subpoena that the Boston Globe reported was sent to state officials last fall.
Posted inCourts
New gig work ballot question lawsuit explained
A coalition of labor leaders and ride-share drivers is asking the Supreme Judicial Court to block ballot measures that would classify the drivers as independent contractors rather than employees under Massachusetts law – and the suit may feel like déjà vu.
Posted inEducation
Teachers union’s MCAS ballot question draws opponents
The Massachusetts Teachers Association, which is leading a ballot question campaign to end the MCAS graduation requirement for high schools students, has drawn an opponent, as an official with a Boston education reform nonprofit recently formed a ballot committee to oppose ending the requirement.
Posted inOpinion
Early college is working for students – and for the state
Early College programs lead to higher enrollment and persistence in higher ed among underserved populations, and contribute to growing a diverse, skilled, and prepared workforce in our most important and competitive industry sectors.
Posted inHousing
Migrant families moving from Logan to Roxbury rec center
Protesters greeted Gov. Maura Healey and Boston Mayor Michelle Wu as they toured a Roxbury community center that is being converted into temporary housing to make room for more homeless families who are eligible for shelter services.
Posted inEducation
Education report recommends thinking outside classroom walls
A new action plan released by the Rennie Center for Education Research and Policy pushes adopting more flexible teaching models and enthusiastically incorporating new technologies to expand school systems and resources virtually.
Posted inOpinion
Should the MBTA be free?
Advocates say fare-free MBTA service would yield environmental gains while addressing income inequality since many passengers are low income, while opponents say it would starve the T of revenue needed for upgrades.
Posted inCriminal Justice
Legislators push to restore felon voting rights
Advocates and legislative allies are pushing to restore voting rights to more than 7,700 incarcerated felons in Massachusetts prisons and jails, a privilege taken away by a voter-approved constitutional amendment in 2000.