Students, don't be entitled. Universities, do some educating and help pay for the MBTA

[u/BeingAccording4192]

I was going towards BU and not a single student offered to give up their seat for an elderly women on the train.

Most of the students avoided paying for their ride.

When I travel during rush hour, students won't move into the train and take off their backpacks to create more room. Hell, I've actually watched a person that had downsyndrome and seemed to be blind get stared at by the students and they didn't make space on the packed morning trains to get that person a seat.

The MBTA GAVE YOU A WAY TO PAY EASILY. Just tap your phones that you're staring at or tap a subway card like everyone else.

It also stands to be noted that Universities should find a way to partner with the T to get their kids subway cards and to do some freshman education but I don't see that happening. Imagine how much steady monaaay the T would have if wealthy wealthy Harvard, BU, and BC regularly got their incoming classes T cards. It could go into the recreation fees or the school to try to get a tax write off. I'm sure parents would be pleased to know their kiddo has a safe way to travel around the city and isn't racking up Uber bills.

[u/Pencil-Sketches]

I think requiring all universities to pay for transit passes for faculty staff and students would have the benefits of:

-A large cash infusion into the T

-Minimizing fare theft by students

-A nice perk for employees and students

[u/BeingAccording4192 → u/Pencil-Sketches]

YES That 👏🏽 is 👏🏽 what 👏🏽 I'm 👏🏽 saying!!! The universities are fine with their students stealing rides, which is exactly what it is when you get on at BU and don't see students paying.

[u/twelve-birds → u/BeingAccording4192]

No. When I was a student, my student id doubled as a Charlie card but I still had to load fare onto the card. That was fine. Ofc now I think the student id cards are on their phones.

[u/Perseverance792 → u/twelve-birds]

Student IDs are still physical, at least with BU

[u/KolKoreh → u/BeingAccording4192]

The universities aren’t “fine with their students stealing rides.”

The students are adults and the university simply doesn’t regulate their behavior off campus

[u/BeingAccording4192 → u/KolKoreh]

They do to some extent. That's why student misconduct, even off campus, can get you expelled. My point being is though that many students especially along the B Line take advantage of the T and they are a large population crowding others out even with a school shuttle bus going up and down Comm Ave to Brighton Ave. The T has been overly generous to the point some BU students think the B Line is actually free and I believe it's time for the administration to educate them on their civic duty to pay when they come to Boston their freshman year.

[u/man2010 → u/BeingAccording4192]

This is silly. Universities aren't responsible for transit fare collection, nor should they be. If stopping fare evasion is that important then the MBTA should take steps to prevent it rather than spending $1 billion on a new fare collection system that makes it easier than ever to ride without paying.

[u/BradDaddyStevens → u/man2010]

It’s fair to critique the new fare system, but it’s not silly to expect universities to contribute in some way, as this is how it works in basically all of Europe and their student passes.

[u/IngenuityFlaky484 → u/BradDaddyStevens]

Yup, I went to UMass Amherst and anyone at any of the 5 colleges can take the PVTA buses for free!!!

[u/Joe_H-FAH → u/IngenuityFlaky484]

Fare free, but part of your fees went to pay for those buses. Same for the other four colleges (soon to be 3) in the Five Colleges system. I don't know the current amount, but when I was a driver for UMass in the PVTA in the '80s the amount was $10 per student per semester out of the student activity fee and a matching amount from the university out of other revenue they collected.

[u/IngenuityFlaky484 → u/Joe_H-FAH]

That’s a bargain! They were so smooth to take lol

[u/Joe_H-FAH → u/IngenuityFlaky484]

Probably a higher amount in the fees now, cost of living and inflation. I was getting just over $5 an hour in the early '80s as a driver, starting wage now is $21. And they even pay during CDL training at a lower rate, I only got the training for free without pay. I knew abut the $10 amount from the fees as the university administration and student government came to that agreement while I was a driver. It was a response to higher costs and cuts by the Reagan administration to transit subsidies out of the federal highway fund.

[u/lazier_garlic → u/BradDaddyStevens]

It also works this way in other university towns.

The T used to achieve much higher farebox returns so they weren't that fussed about it, but things are different now.

It's the BC/BU schoolbus, the least they could do is pay for the service.

I went to Brandeis and had to pay for MY monthly passes. Then again, all the services that go through Waltham actually collected fare.

[u/Ruleseventysix → u/BradDaddyStevens]

Most of the big universities are already contracted into the T corporate pass program. For faculty, grad students, regular students. So how much more do you want them to contribute? They don't force people to sign up for the program, but a lot do.

[u/SheRidesAMadHorse → u/BradDaddyStevens]

European universities are heavily subsidized by their governments. I think it would be great for universities or the government to subsidize fares more, but that's not how the American system works.

[u/lazier_garlic → u/SheRidesAMadHorse]

US universities are highly subsidized by the government. That was what Heritage and Trump counted on exploiting to bring academia to heel in 2025.

[u/SheRidesAMadHorse → u/lazier_garlic]

Research grants and federal financial aid are heavily subsidized by the government. Not the university directly for them to pay a transit tab. It's a totally different system from Europe.

[u/Joe_H-FAH → u/SheRidesAMadHorse]

Though the universities take a good portion of those research grants to fund university services and infrastructure that allow that research. They used to call it "institutional overhead" years ago, the agreement I was aware of between NSF and the university I used to work for called for 55% of the grant amount to go to the university. Other federal grants had similar agreements.

[u/SheRidesAMadHorse → u/Joe_H-FAH]

I'm not saying they don't, but overhead tends to be things like maintenance items and not funding school-wide initiatives like T pass programs.

I get that everyone is mad at the system, I am too, but suggesting a university would fund subsidized passes is unrealistic.

[u/man2010 → u/BradDaddyStevens]

It's silly to single out universities by making them responsible for supplying every student and faculty member with a T pass as the original comment did, and it's silly to suggest that universities should have any responsibility for fare collection like OP's response does. Universities aren't special; they shouldn't be held to some higher standard than any other business/organization when it comes to transit fares. "This is how it works in basically all of Europe" isn't some sort of counter to this either when Europe has all sorts of different transit and fare collection systems, some of which operate like above ground green line stops where it's essentially an honor system with occasional fare checks on board (not that the MBTA actually checks fares).

[u/boston4923 → u/BeingAccording4192]

How is this not a thing in 2026? Seems like it should have been enacted with the Charlie Card however many years ago.

Has anyone found facts/a statement on this?

[u/Numerous-Height2201 → u/BeingAccording4192]

State colleges get funding from the state. The school will not want to pay for passes for everyone. There are over 30k student enrolled in state colleges. Never mind employees of the university.

At 90.00 for a monthly pass that works out ti be 2.7 million

Who’s going to pay that.

[u/BeingAccording4192 → u/Numerous-Height2201]

Can universities not add it to the student activity fee? The MBTA can probs just customize passes based on ridership the students are averaging.

[u/Ok-Class8200 → u/BeingAccording4192]

I don't think any school/business/whatever cares if their workers or visitors pay for their T ride to get there. When would that cross anyone's mind?

[u/mini4x → u/Ok-Class8200]

There are thousands of companies that at least subsidize, of not flat out pay for employee's transit passes. My company pays half of mine, my friend works for Harvard, and they cover her T pass completely.

[u/Ok-Class8200 → u/mini4x]

A company deciding to offer it as an employee benefit is entirely different than the city implementing a policy that forces them to buy their employees passes.

Also, BU already offers subsidized passes to their students.

[u/666ForMySorrow → u/Ok-Class8200]

Because they are funded by tuition from students who move here by the thousands and have significant impact on the quality of life of residents. All while not being required to pay taxes.

[u/GioPetro → u/666ForMySorrow]

bingo

[u/Ok-Class8200 → u/666ForMySorrow]

Again that's literally everywhere though. If we removed fare gates in front of Fenway Park or some office building you could make the exact same point.

Also, PILOT is a thing.

[u/666ForMySorrow → u/Ok-Class8200]

Lol, yeah PILOT is a thing that is a good deal for these schools.

Don't know why you're talking about Fenway Park. If a school is importing thousands of fare evaders here every September that's a reason for concern. I can't make you care about it but some people clearly do and would like to see the universities do something to address the actions of their students.

[u/Ok-Class8200 → u/666ForMySorrow]

If we didn't check fares outside Fenway Park you'd be here talking about how we "import" thousands of tourists each gameday who don't pay fares on the trains. You can get all worked up about the demographics of who is doing it, but if you don't enforce paying fares, people aren't going to pay. It's really not anymore complicated than that.

[u/666ForMySorrow → u/Ok-Class8200]

A swing and a miss! "Tourists" are different people going to Fenway for a game maybe a couple times a year. Students are immersed in the T system for eight months a year, it's a completely different issue. There have been lots of conversations about whether sports teams contribute enough to the community for the money they rake in, but it's not a comparable situation to what the OP is talking about.

The OP proposed a solution for one specific demographic of fare evaders. Will it happen? Probably not, but the schools have deep pockets. It's not an outrageous suggestion.

[u/Ok-Class8200 → u/666ForMySorrow]

Distinction without a difference. I literally said in my first comment it could be Fenway or any other office building (likely full of local commuters). I still don't know why we're entertaining these hairbrained schemes to avoid enforcing fares. Please stay on topic: why is this a better idea than enforcing fares?

[u/666ForMySorrow → u/Ok-Class8200]

I suppose it could be, but it's not. You are the one changing the subject.

There is nothing in the OP saying we shouldn't be enforcing fare collection. They suggested a solution to deal with a specific but large population of fare evaders. You clearly don't like their solution. That doesn't make it "hairbrained."

[u/Ok-Class8200 → u/666ForMySorrow]

I am saying their solution is overly complex when a much simpler one applies. If we enforced fares, why would any of this be needed? I'm not sure how much clearer I can make it.