Project History
TransitWorks began in 1997 as a collaborative initiative, joining the business community, local municipalities, Boston region transit riders, and other interests under a single umbrella organization. This collaboration was dedicated to maintaining the quality and service levels of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA), and attempted to help the MBTA take aggressive action to retain and renew relationships with the riding public in order to improve MBTA customer satisfaction, stem a loss in transit ridership, and build public support for the MBTA. The collaboration realized some success over a four year period using all volunteer staff time. After 2001, the initial collaborators of TransitWorks (the Artery Business Committee, now A Better City; the Artery Business Committee Transportation Management Association, now A Better City Transportation Management Association; and the MBTA Advisory Board) continued to see the opportunity and promise of TransitWorks and reestablished the project by hiring a full time staff person in 2004. Today, TransitWorks is designed to repeat and expand upon the work completed from 1997-2001, through system wide evaluations and projects designed to address specific issues at the MBTA.
2009 Project History & Summaries
2009Transit Diary Study
Previously known as the Transit Diary Study, the Between the Lines project will create an online module
for riders to track and record their transit experiences during a two-week period of time. This project
will result in rich, descriptive data that will provide a clear picture of the day-to-day riding experience of
transit users. This type of data is unique because, instead of providing a single snapshot of the user
experience, the Between the Lines will provide longitudinal data that captures the patterns and daily
experiences of riders. In addition to creating this online evaluation application, TransitWorks will also
utilize social networking and micro-blogging technology to further gather information.
2009 Bicycle Transportation Survey
With so many new cyclists taking to the streets, many of whom also utilize public transit, it is more important than ever to understand the needs and satisfaction levels of these users. In the past few years the MBTA has invested money into bike rack equipped buses, trains and stations. TransitWorks and the MBTA would like to better understand how these efforts are impacting the cycling community and what more can be done to increase satisfaction and accessibility by these users to MBTA facilities and services. This survey is targeted towards local cyclists who use MBTA services to find out how easily they are able to access and navigate the system.
