Explore Boston · Plan Your Trip
Getting Around
The T, buses, ferries and bikes, plus the trains and the airport: how Boston moves, and how to ride it like a regular.
Boston is a walking city with a subway threaded underneath it, and the T is how locals cover the distance their feet won’t. It is old, compact and occasionally cranky, but it reaches nearly everything in this book: the museums, the ballpark, the waterfront, the colleges across the river, even the airport. Learn the four colors, the downtown stations where they meet and one rule about paying, and leave the rental car keys at the counter.
Boston opened America’s first subway in 1897, and the T still does most of the work. This chapter covers the lines and branches, the payment fine print, the trains, boats and bikes beyond the subway, Amtrak and the airport, and the small habits that keep a trip smooth. Fares and timetables change: the fares below were current in October 2026, and the logic behind them lasts longer. For anything happening today, the T’s own app and alerts pages are the final word, and weekends deserve a second look.
Plan Your Trip · Transit map
The T: the Whole System
- Red Line · Harvard, Kendall/MIT, Beacon Hill at Charles/MGH, Boston Common, South Station and the JFK Library at JFK/UMass.
- Blue Line · The Aquarium and waterfront, Airport station for Logan, East Boston and Revere Beach.
- Orange Line · Back Bay, Chinatown, Downtown Crossing, Haymarket for the North End and Faneuil Hall, North Station for TD Garden, and Assembly Row.
- Mattapan trolley · Vintage trolleys from the 1940s between Ashmont and Mattapan; a ride for rail fans more than a sightseeing route.
- Green Line · Copley, the Public Garden at Arlington, Fenway Park via Kenmore, the Museum of Fine Arts on the E, the Museum of Science and TD Garden.
- Silver Line · Buses: the SL1 to Logan, the SL1, SL2 and SL3 through the Seaport from South Station, and the SL4 and SL5 to Nubian Square.
Plan Your Trip · Transit map
The T Downtown
- Red Line · Harvard, Kendall/MIT, Beacon Hill at Charles/MGH, Boston Common, South Station and the JFK Library at JFK/UMass.
- Blue Line · The Aquarium and waterfront, Airport station for Logan, East Boston and Revere Beach.
- Orange Line · Back Bay, Chinatown, Downtown Crossing, Haymarket for the North End and Faneuil Hall, North Station for TD Garden, and Assembly Row.
- Mattapan trolley · Vintage trolleys from the 1940s between Ashmont and Mattapan; a ride for rail fans more than a sightseeing route.
- Green Line · Copley, the Public Garden at Arlington, Fenway Park via Kenmore, the Museum of Fine Arts on the E, the Museum of Science and TD Garden.
- Silver Line · Buses: the SL1 to Logan, the SL1, SL2 and SL3 through the Seaport from South Station, and the SL4 and SL5 to Nubian Square.
The lines at a glance
Every line is named for its color, and every one passes through downtown. The Red, Orange and Blue are full-size subways; the Green is a trolley line, underground downtown and on the street out on its branches; the Silver Line is a bus that sometimes acts like a train.
Green Line B
Along Commonwealth Avenue past Boston University and through Allston to Boston College.
Green Line C
Out Beacon Street through Coolidge Corner in Brookline to Cleveland Circle.
Green Line D
Through Fenway and Brookline Village to Riverside in Newton, mostly clear of traffic; north, it ends at Union Square in Somerville.
Green Line E
Down Huntington Avenue past Northeastern and the Museum of Fine Arts to Heath Street; north, it reaches Medford/Tufts.
Red Line branches
The Red splits south of JFK/UMass: Ashmont trains serve Dorchester and meet the Mattapan trolley, Braintree trains serve Quincy.
SL1, SL2, SL3
The Waterfront routes leave from an underground platform at South Station and run through the Seaport to Logan, the Design Center or Chelsea.
SL4 and SL5
Street buses along Washington Street through the South End to Nubian Square, paid at bus fare.
Paying
The easiest ticket is already in your pocket. Since August 1, 2024, the T’s readers have taken contactless credit and debit cards and phones or watches with a mobile wallet. Tap-to-ride works on the subway, buses including the Silver Line, the Mattapan trolley and, at the ticket booth or register, the ferries. It does not work on the Commuter Rail.
What it costs (October 2026)
Subway $2.40 a ride; local bus $1.70, and express buses cost the same during the fare pilot that began September 1, 2026. Commuter Rail runs $2.40 to $13.25 by zone, and ferries $2.40 to $9.75 by route. Passes: one day $11, seven days $22.50, a monthly LinkPass (subway and local bus) $90. Children 11 and under ride free; seniors 65 and over, riders with disabilities, Medicare cardholders, students and low-income adults pay reduced fares with an MBTA-issued card. The RIDE, the T’s door-to-door paratransit, is $3.35 a trip. Fares change: check mbta.com/fares before a long stay.
CharlieCard
The T’s reusable plastic card is free from fare machines in most stations, the Charlie Service Center at 296 Washington Street, or many local stores. It covers subway and bus, not ferries.
CharlieTicket
The paper version from station machines. It also holds Commuter Rail and ferry tickets, and its stored value earns the same 2-hour transfers as a CharlieCard; only cash paid on board earns none.
Passes
One-day and seven-day passes cover unlimited subway, bus and Silver Line rides, but only on a CharlieCard or CharlieTicket; contactless cards and phones can’t hold a pass.
Transfers
Use the same card or phone on every leg. Under a pilot that began in September 2026 and runs into early 2027, any mix of bus, subway and ferry within two hours costs only the priciest leg. Cash earns no transfers.
How to ride
Inbound means toward the four downtown stations around Boston Common; outbound means away. Underground, platforms are signed by the end of the line, so know whether you want Alewife or Ashmont/Braintree, Oak Grove or Forest Hills, Wonderland or Bowdoin.
Each of those four stations joins a pair of lines: Park Street links Red and Green, Downtown Crossing Red and Orange, State Orange and Blue, Government Center Green and Blue. Haymarket and North Station connect Orange and Green. The Red and Blue never meet; ride the Orange one stop from Downtown Crossing to State.
At the Green Line’s street-level stops, board at the front and pay at the farebox, or tap contactless at any door. Press the yellow or black strip by the windows to request a stop.
Trains run from early morning until roughly 1 a.m., about an hour later on Friday and Saturday nights. Planned repair work lands mostly on weekends, when part of a line closes and free, accessible shuttle buses take over; follow the signs and add time.
MBTA Go, the T’s official app, shows live arrivals and closures but doesn’t sell fares. Online, mbta.com/alerts has a Planned Work section for the weeks ahead, and T-Alerts sends text or email notices.
Beyond the subway
Commuter Rail
The purple lines fan out from North and South stations to Salem, Gloucester, Rockport, Concord, Lowell and Providence. Fares rise by zone, from 1A in the city out to 10. Buy before boarding, in the mTicket app, at a fare machine or ticket office; cash on board costs extra where tickets were on sale.
Ferries
The Charlestown ferry runs daily, year-round, from Long Wharf to the Navy Yard and USS Constitution. The weekday Harbor Loop links North Station, the Aquarium, the Seaport and Logan mornings and early evenings. Hingham and Hull boats serve the South Shore; East Boston, Lynn, Winthrop and Quincy are seasonal. Harbor Islands boats are a separate service.
Buses
More than 150 routes fill the gaps between rail lines; board at the front. Two handy ones: the 39 down Huntington Avenue from Back Bay to Forest Hills, and the 1 along Massachusetts Avenue from Harvard Square to Nubian, frequent on paper and a local byword for not showing up; if the app shows nothing for 15 minutes, walk, since Harvard to the river is 20 minutes on foot.
Bluebikes
More than 5,000 shared bikes, e-bikes included, at more than 600 stations. Buy a ride or day pass in the Bluebikes app, scan a bike’s code, and return it to any station once the dock light turns green. Rides are timed; state law requires helmets for riders 16 and under.
Accessibility
Most, but not all, subway, trolley and Commuter Rail stations are accessible, and every MBTA bus is. Elevators do break: the Access tab on mbta.com/alerts lists elevator and escalator outages by station, and the T’s elevator and escalator hotline is 617-222-2828. The online Trip Planner offers a wheelchair-accessible trip option.
The RIDE, the T’s door-to-door, shared-ride paratransit service, is open to eligible visitors for up to 21 days in a 12-month period; contact the MBTA Mobility Center before you arrive.
Stations without step-free access
Of the 125 subway and trolley stations, 27 have steps only (MBTA, October 2026): Bowdoin on the Blue Line; Boylston and Hynes Convention Center in the Green Line’s central subway; Symphony, closed for rebuilding until 2029; and 23 surface stops on the Green Line’s B, C and E branches and the Mattapan trolley: Allston Street, Back of the Hill, Blandford Street, Brandon Hall, Chestnut Hill Avenue, Chiswick Road, Dean Road, Englewood Avenue, Fairbanks Street, Fenwood Road, Griggs Street, Hawes Street, Kent Street, Mission Park, Packard’s Corner, Riverway, Saint Paul Street, South Street, Summit Avenue, Sutherland Road, Tappan Street, Valley Road and Warren Street. On the T maps they are drawn as open circles.
Step-free walking
The Freedom Trail’s downtown half follows brick and concrete sidewalks with curb cuts; beyond Haymarket the North End’s narrow streets, Copp’s Hill and Charlestown are steeper and rougher, and the Bunker Hill Monument’s 294 steps have no elevator. Beacon Hill, and with it the Black Heritage Trail, is steep, with brick sidewalks and some cobblestones. The Harborwalk, the Esplanade along the Charles, the Public Garden and the Commonwealth Avenue Mall are level and paved: the easiest long walks in the city.
Quick tips
Stand right, walk left
On escalators, stand to the right and leave the left side for people walking. Rush-hour regulars take this seriously.
One card at the reader
Pull the card you mean to use out of your wallet; a reader facing two contactless cards may reject the tap.
Read the front of the train
Green Line trains show a branch letter and destination. Four branches share the downtown tunnel, so the color alone won’t get you there.
Game days at Fenway
Trains through Kenmore pack solid before and after Red Sox games. Leave early, walk, or ride the D branch to Fenway station.
The B takes its time
The B branch stops every few blocks along Commonwealth Avenue. Heading to Boston College, budget more time than the map suggests.
Symphony Hall
With Symphony station closed, ride the Orange Line to Massachusetts Avenue; the hall is about a 3-minute walk.
Late-night math
Last connections downtown leave around 12:30 a.m. Sunday through Thursday and about an hour later Friday and Saturday. Plan the ride home first.
Weekend day trips
The Commuter Rail’s $10 weekend pass covers unlimited rides on every line and in every zone on a Saturday or Sunday, less than one ticket to Rockport; an easy pick for Salem one day and Rockport the next.
Give up the seat
Offer your seat to older riders and people with disabilities, especially the priority seats nearest the doors.
Amtrak in Boston
Four stations, three directions, and the one transfer that catches visitors out
South Station & Back Bay
New York, Washington, Chicago
Acela and Northeast Regional trains start at South Station and run down the Northeast Corridor through Providence and New York to Philadelphia and Washington; both also stop at Back Bay and Route 128. The Lake Shore Limited leaves once a day for Chicago by way of Worcester, Springfield, the Berkshires and Albany. South Station is on the Red Line and the Silver Line; Back Bay is on the Orange Line.
North Station
The Downeaster to Maine
Maine is the exception. The Downeaster leaves from North Station, under TD Garden, and runs through New Hampshire to Portland and Brunswick, with stops like Wells, Freeport and, in summer, Old Orchard Beach: five round trips a day, about 2½ hours to Portland. North Station is on the Orange and Green Lines and the northside Commuter Rail.
The transfer & Route 128
North and South don’t touch
Amtrak doesn’t connect North Station and South Station. Off the Downeaster and onto a New York train? Ride the Orange Line six stops from North Station to Back Bay, where the Acela and Regionals stop too. Starting from the suburbs? Route 128 station in Westwood has a parking garage, Acela and Regional service, and the Commuter Rail’s Providence/Stoughton Line.
Logan Airport
Subway, bus or boat — and the free ride back downtown
By subway
Blue Line + free shuttle
Take the 5-minute ride on the Blue Line under the harbor to Airport station (change from the Orange Line at State or the Green at Government Center). Free Massport shuttles run from there to every terminal: route 22 for A and B, 33 for C and E, and 55 for all four early and late.
By bus from South Station
The SL1, free from Logan
The Silver Line SL1 runs between South Station and the curb at every terminal. Leaving the airport it’s always free; heading there, it’s free when you transfer from the Red Line. South Station also has the Commuter Rail and Amtrak.
Logan Express & the harbor
Buses and boats
Massport’s Logan Express runs straight to every terminal every half hour from Back Bay (800 Boylston Street and Copley Place, 5 a.m.–9 p.m.; $3 to the airport, free coming back) and, for $9 each way, from park-and-ride lots at Danvers, Framingham, Woburn and the MBTA’s Quincy Adams garage, which stands in for the Braintree lot from November 3, 2026. MBTA ferries link the airport dock with Long Wharf, Central Wharf by the Aquarium, the Seaport, North Station, Winthrop and the South Shore (some routes are seasonal), Boston Water Taxi runs on demand, 8 a.m.–8 p.m., $20 a person one way, and the free route 66 shuttle connects the dock to the terminals. Come by boat or Back Bay Logan Express and ask for a “Ticket to Skip” to the front of the security line.
The terminals
A, B, C and E
Four terminals, no D. Terminal E is the main international terminal, though some international flights leave from the others — check your airline before you go. By day, the free route 11 shuttle loops between all four.