transit authority mwrta map of the metrowest regional transit authority mwrta service area in green with the central hub town of framingham in blue . founded 2006 headquarters framingham massachusetts locale metrowest massachusetts service area ashland dover framingham holliston hopkinton marlborough natick sherborn southborough sudbury wayland wellesley and weston service type bus paratransit alliance 495 metrowest corridor partnership metrowest 495 transportation management association marlborough regional chamber of commerce metrowest chamber of commerce metrowest growth management committee transaction associates inc. routes sixteen bus routes hubs framingham massachusetts fleet 20 ford e series cutaways annual ridership 484 000 fy2014 1 operator first transit administrator ed carr website mwrta.com the metrowest regional transit authority mwrta is a regional public transit authority in the state of massachusetts providing bus and paratransit service to eleven communities in the boston metrowest . the mwrta was formed in 2006 and began service on july 1 2007 with the purpose of filling a void in public transportation service in the metrowest . through a commitment to deliver expanded public transportation service to the business and commercial hubs across the metrowest region the goals and purpose of the mwrta are embodied in its mission statement build a public transportation system to deliver convenient and dependable service that enhances mobility environmental quality and economic vitality in the region . 2 funding for the mwrta comes partially from the state and local governments of the communities it operates within . 3 contents 1 paratransit 2 buses 2.1 routes 2.2 fares 3 history 3.1 the birth of the mwrta 3.2 natick neighborhood bus system 3.3 the ride 3.4 mbta green line shuttle 4 future plans 4.1 within the service region 4.2 milford and hudson 5 references 6 external links paratransit edit paratransit service is a flexible passenger transportation service which does not follow fixed routes or schedules . according to ada requirements the mwrta must provide paratransit service as a curb to curb service to eligible residents having a physical cognitive or mental disability within a 3 4 mile radius of a fixed route regular bus service . in addition mwrta paratransit service is also provided to eligible residents within any of its eleven member communities . all mwrta buses are equipped with lift systems to accommodate the physically handicapped along their regular fixed routes . the mwrta also provides paratransit service to mwrta service area border towns at an increased fare . 4 the paratransit service is provided in the form of a call ahead multi passenger shuttle allowing disabled residents of mwrta communities to be picked up at their houses and shuttled to any other location within or bordering the mwrta service region such as other residences grocery stores hospitals or job sites . prior to the creation of the mwrta the massachusetts bay transportation authority mbta provided part of its paratransit service called the ride see mbta accessibility to the two communities of framingham and natick within the current mwrta service area . the mbta continue to provide the ride to framingham and natick until 2009 under contractual obligations . on july 1 2009 administration of paratransit service to framingham and natick switched from the mbta to mwrta in alignment with the change in assessments paid to the mwrta by those communities rather than to the mbta . 4 buses edit the mwrta provides sixteen fixed bus routes . the fleet consists of twenty ford e series cutaway based 18 passenger buses . all buses contain lift systems capable of carrying up to 800 pounds for physically disabled passengers . 5 routes edit displayed below is the mwrta route listing . 6 following each route entry is a listing of points of interest which can be reached along the route . . numerical mwrta route listing route destinations of interest route 1 woodland shuttle natick mall mathworks woodland t station boston scientific commuter shuttle route 2 framingham circuit clockwise central hub framingham concord howard sts . metrowest medical center saxonville nobscot centre common stop & shop malls route 3 framingham circuit counter clockwise central hub framingham concord howard sts . wal mart saxonville nobscot malls . route 4 market basket beaver park natick mall central hub mci adesa beaver park market basket concord howard st. old conn path natick mall shoppers world sherwood plaza . route 5 hopkinton line central hub framingham ashland hopkinton framingham mbta station . route 6 holliston milford line central hub framingham ashland holliston milford framingham mbta station . route 7 southborough marlborough line central hub downtown framingham southborough marlborough city hall . route 7c inner city marlborough marlborough city hall marlborough hospital solomon pond mall post road shopping center hager street . route 8 wellesley line natick mall wellesley college weston rd. fells market cross st. cameron st. central st. linden st. state st. wellesley hills lower falls barton rd. newton wellesley hospital woodland t station . route 9 natick framingham worcester rd natick collection shoppers world technology park and the 9 90 corporate center route 10 natick daily route central hub both natick train stations mall area grocery stores downtown natick as well as the south natick area route 11 natick mid day see route 10 but doesn t go to eliot church in south natick westborough commuter shuttle jefferson hills staples drive framingham westborough tech park area framingham locations natick commuter shuttle both natick commuter rail stations and areas around natick boston hospital shuttle the mwrta partnership with geographics lab provides live updates of bus locations via an online map service . 7 the service displays current bus locations on a map with the use of bus mounted gps devices . the map service also allows the individual bus routes to be displayed overlaying the map . fares edit fare costs are as follows 8 mwrta bus fare costs age group cash charliecard adults 1.50 1.10 students with id or under age 18 1.00 n a elderly age 65 or disabled showing appropriate id 0.75 0.70 children under age six accompanied by a paying adult free n a transfers are provided free of charge between buses with the use of a transfer coupon or charliecard . transfer coupons must be requested from the driver of the bus upon exiting the bus and displayed to the driver of the bus to be transferred to upon entry . the transfer coupon or stored transfer in the case of a charlie card must be used within 30 minutes of receipt . 8 in november 2010 the mwrta started accepting fares electronically via the mbta charliecard . stored value charliecard users are offered a discounted local fare of 1.10 . senior disabled passengers are also offered a discounted fare when using the appropriate senior disabled charliecards . history edit the birth of the mwrta edit in 2006 an economic stimulus bill passed in the commonwealth of massachusetts included legislation pushed by karen spilka and other metrowest area legislators . 9 the legislation opened the possibility of a new regional transit authority to be formed in the metrowest region . the legislation states that any community providing an annual assessment to the massachusetts bay transportation authority mbta but not served directly by the mbta may form their own regional transit authority rta using that funding instead . 10 under the advisement of the legislation the mwrta was created in framingham with the neighboring communities of holliston hopkinton natick ashland and wayland . at the time framingham had its own community bus system called the lift local inter framingham transit . the newly formed mwrta was based on the lift . with this system the communities of the mwrta would have a basis for their new rta . 11 natick neighborhood bus system edit as part of the growth of the mwrta and due to natick joining the system natick s own neighborhood bus system was incorporated into the mwrta in the summer of 2008 . rates rose from 1 to 1.50 for adults with the rate hike justified as allowing residents of natick to move anywhere in the system as far out as marlborough . 12 the incorporation of this system created a link of service from natick to marlborough across two routes spanning more than 25 miles combined . the ride edit the ride is a paratransit service provided by the massachusetts bay transportation authority mbta to regions of the greater boston area . prior to the creation of the mwrta the mbta provided paratransit service to the mwrta member communities of framingham and natick through the ride . due to the formation of the mwrta as a new regional transit authority rta within the metrowest annual assessments can now be funneled toward the mwrta rather than the mbta . administration of paratransit service to framingham and natick switched from the mbta to the mwrta on july 1 2009 . 4 mbta green line shuttle edit an mwrta bus at woodland in 2015 green line shuttle service is targeted at commuters traveling to work in the metrowest from boston . it poses an alternative to the mbta commuter rail framingham worcester line which focuses more on boston inbound traffic during the morning hours and outbound traffic from boston to framingham during the evening hours . consequently the commuter rail provides less frequent service in the opposite direction during those respective times . the green line shuttle instead links the mwrta bus system with the mbta subway system and provides service every twenty five minutes during morning and evening commute hours . 13 14 future plans edit within the service region edit the mwrta is discussing when expansion of bus service within its service region particularly to the four communities which receive only paratransit service . in particular sherborn is a member community of the mwrta but does not receive fixed route bus service . prior to the creation of the mwrta sherborn paid annual assessments to the mbta although it did not receive public transportation service . since joining the mwrta selectmen conducted surveys through mass mailings to the residents of sherborn and responses were mostly positive toward creating a bus route between downtown sherborn and a natick commuter rail station . 13 milford and hudson edit the mwrta advisory board discussed the idea of milford and hudson joining the mwrta . however neither is seen to join due to fiscal constraints in both communities . neither community pays local assessments to the mbta . thus unlike the other member communities funding could not be diverted from the mbta to the mwrta ; they would need to make additional budgetary allotments to become members of the mwrta . 15 other possible additions include stow maynard berlin clinton references edit haddadin jim 22 november 2014 . mwrta sees 10 percent increase in bus riders . metrowest daily news . retrieved 4 april 2016 . about mwrta . metrowest regional transit authority . retrieved october 8 2008 . mwrta faq . metrowest regional transit authority . retrieved october 8 2008 . a b c mwrta senior & disabled transportation . metrowest regional transit authority . retrieved october 8 2008 . andrew j. manuse december 2 2007 . roads & rails metrowest rta takes over this week . the metrowest daily news . retrieved october 9 2008 . mwrta routes & schedules . metrowest regional transit authority . retrieved february 2 2010 . real time mwrta bus tracking service geographics laboratory a b mwrta rates & passes . metrowest regional transit authority . retrieved october 22 2014 . jennifer kavanaugh . june 25 2006 . mbta may no longer be the only game in town pdf . the milford daily news . matthew g. feher june 23 2006 . legislature sends nearly 1b in new spending to governor . massachusetts municipal association . john c. drake june 28 2007 . regional transit authority sets its wheels in motion . the boston globe . charlie breitrose . june 28 2008 . natick bus to join mwrta system pdf . the