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This week, Massachusetts entered phase two of reopening -- which means more people going back to work. And even while protests against racism continue, we’ve got to look at the way systemic racism shows up on the MBTA.

Black Bostonians are less likely to be able to work from home -- and we’re more likely to depend on buses to get to work and run errands.¹ So when buses are crowded, that’s not just a pandemic issue, it’s also a racist policy failure, endangering Black and Brown people.

Tell the T: increase bus service to make sure no one has to ride a dangerously crowded bus.

We already knew that the transit system in greater Boston is a result of racist history and policies. Black bus riders face an equity gap -- on average, Black bus riders ride for 64 more hours per year than White bus riders.²

Add a pandemic that is already sickening and killing Black folks at three times the rate of white folks -- and you can see why it’s so important to make sure that the T runs enough service to protect all of its riders.³

The good news? The MBTA is already considering this through their Better Bus Project, and the bus network redesign. That would include improved bus routes, hybrid electric buses to limit air pollution, and more bus lanes to increase frequency with less crowding.

That’s why we’re calling on the T to hit the accelerator on this plan, and make sure to increase service to protect the folks who depend on bus service -- disproportionately being Black, Brown, and low-income riders. And switching to hybrid electric buses has the added benefit of reducing pollution that exacerbates pre-existing conditions for COVID, like asthma and heart disease.

Tell the MBTA: Expand and improve service NOW before overcrowding becomes an issue: add more bus lanes, more hybrid electric buses, and more frequent service.

Thanks for standing up to fight against racism and for a better T.

(And if you want to learn a little more about this, listen to Friday's WGBH piece about what the MBTA should do, including an interview with me.)

Read more:

1. "Not everybody can work from home: Black and Hispanic workers are much less likely to be able to telework", Economic Policy Institute, March 19, 2020.
2. "64 Hours: Closing the Bus Equity Gap", Report from Livable Streets Alliance, September 2019
2. "Black Americans dying of Covid-19 at three times the rate of white people", The Guardian, May 20, 2020