We are staying in touch the MBTA about 71/73 bus reliability issues — too many dropped trips. Dropped trips are a special hardship for riders in the evening when trips are spaced far apart anyway.
The MBTA is aware of the problem of dropped trips and offered the response below to a recent inquiry from my team.
We track reliability through dropped trips (service that doesn’t operate as scheduled). Our goal is to keep dropped trips below 0.5%. In Spring 2025, Route 73 experienced 3.6% dropped trips. While this is a significant improvement from the 6.2% we saw in Spring 2023, it remains higher than our target, and our team continues to work on addressing this as we increase bus operator hiring.
Route 73’s 3.6% dropped trip rate is above our system-wide goal of 0.5%, indicating ongoing reliability challenges that we’re actively working to resolve.
The reliability issues we’re seeing are not primarily related to bus bunching, but rather to our staffing system and how we plan for bus operator absences. In plain words, This is something we are actively working on and hoping to improve with the next rating.
Regarding out of service buses, due to the temporary replacement of left-side door buses while North Cambridge Garage is being reconstructed for new battery buses, Route 73 is currently operating with a special service pattern. During rush hours, inbound trips drop off in the upper busway and immediately pick up outbound passengers. During off-peak times (midday, evenings, weekends), buses go “OUT OF SERVICE” to allow operators a brief opportunity to park and access restrooms. Buses also go out of service at the end of operators’ shifts when returning to the garage.
We continue to monitor bus operator hiring, which is growing, and we hope to make an announcement later this year regarding Route 73 scheduled frequency improvements.
Addendum on November 22: Ridership and Trips Comparison
There is a perennial perception among 71 and 73 ridership that the other line has it better. This perception appears among some comments below. In truth, both lines have the same service.
The perception derives from an illusion caused by bus bunching. If you are between bunches on one line and you see the other line’s bunch go by, it feels like the other line has all the buses. For example, I tend to ride the #73. This week, one evening around 6:30PM, I waited half an hour and watched five #71 buses go by until I finally saw four #73’s roll in.
Here are trip and boarding stats from Fall 2024 (the most recent published). Both lines have about the same number of trips and the 73 has somewhat higher ridership.
Fall 2024 Outbound Data for Harvard Station by Line and Time of Day — Weekday Averages
| Time Period | 73 Trips | 71 Trips | 73 Total Boarding | 71 Total Boarding |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| VERY_EARLY_MORNING | 5 | 5 | 7 | 9.9 |
| EARLY_AM | 6 | 5 | 29.7 | 21.1 |
| AM_PEAK | 10 | 11 | 96.9 | 87.1 |
| MIDDAY_BASE | 17 | 17 | 73.5 | 62.4 |
| MIDDAY_SCHOOL | 12 | 11 | 93.6 | 62.7 |
| PM_PEAK | 12 | 13 | 265.7 | 203.2 |
| EVENING | 12 | 12 | 109.6 | 72 |
| LATE_EVENING | 6 | 5 | 25.1 | 20.7 |
This response is only for rte 73. Nothing is said about 71, which also has dropped buses too often. Can they please comment on this?
Why is this article only about #73 busses? I call the MBTA regularly about dropped trips from the #71 for my AM work trips. In fact, Senator Brownsberger, I’ve noticed you often speak about the #73 (Belmont) busses over the #71 (Watertown) busses and confuse them as well. I live in Waterown, not Belmont, and want to hear about my route, which I bet is more underserve than Belmont’s, according to my observance over the years of how many more busses Belmont seems to have over Watertown. Looks like 3x as many. So give me my data, please!
Agreed…. I am so frustrated with the #71 missing buses and have missed appointments because of them There are MANY more #73 trips than #71!
agreed. Just don’t expect accountability from the MBTA.
Also agree. Thank you Lauri and others.
I often see many 73 busses go by over the 71 when I am waiting in Harvard Sq. It’s to the point I avoid the bus system whenever I can.
If you wait in the Harvard Sq. bus tunnel any evening between 5 and 6 pm, you will see multiple buses come through with “Not in service.” That is definitely not off-peak and I hope no drivers are going off shift in the middle of rush hour. I used to think there must be a good reason for those “Not in service” buses, but now I doubt it. The MBTA’s response lacks credibility. I hope the last sentence about frequency improvements is true.
Thank you for looking into this, Will. Although the dropped trips may be new, their failure to adhere to to their published schedule has been an issue for decades. The 78 also has developed lateness problems, (often 25 minutes late) at least on Saturdays when I often take it. The problems seem unrelated to traffic or road work. Even when, on a Sunday, it is more or less on-time, it is often somewhat late. Since this bus runs only every 60-65 minutes on the weekend, it would be helpful to be able to count on it being on time.
It is not just dropped trips. When waiting for the 71 bus to Harvard Sq in the morning, each driver will speed past pointing to the bus behind him. Sometime 4 in a row go by without stopping. So frustrating!
Yes, dropped trips are a problem. When I must be somewhere at a specific time — a medical appointment, a BSO concert, etc. — I leave early enough that I can afford one dropped trip by the 73 or some delay on the red or green line. This almost always works and avoids the anxiety about getting there on time that would otherwise be stressful and annoying. While the MBTA Trip Planner is a useful resource, I know better than to rely on its idealistic times and will often add an extra half hour or more if two buses are involved. On the other hand, its walk times are usually pretty reliable and walking about an hour from near the Belmont Senior Center to various appointments or stores in Arlington or Watertown is often quicker than even the MBTA advertised vehicle times. This is a practicable approach for a retired person in good health, but not for many working people. Traveling on the MBTA is more pleasant when you don’t have to be somewhere at a specific time; it will get you there eventually. It would really be nice to have the proposed bus from Waverley to Arlington Center, but I probably won’t live that long.
Susan Staves
The 71 bus schedule is atrocious. Before COVID it was 10-12 minute headways, now it’s 20. This service is not up to the task of meeting the growing population of Watertown.
Also the combination of Mt. Auburn St. construction in Watertown and the Brattle St. bus detour in Cambridge exacerbates the problem. Buses are often stuck on Brattle St for 10-15 minutes in the rush hours.
In the evening, if you arrive after 5:40 PM at the Harvard busway, there is about a 30 minute wait for a 71 I’ve gotten trapped by this a couple of times, and my usual 40 minute commute has stretched to 1.5 hours. It makes me just want to work remotely all the time.
I take the bus from Watertown Sq. and could also rely on the Connector when the bus was late. However, the Connector now skips the square completely and goes to 66 Galen which is too far of a walk out of my way. It would be good if the Connector could service the Square again. Maybe there was low ridership, or it took too much time being caught in traffic, I don’t know.
I agree with the numerous previous comments regarding the 71 – both in wanting to see that data as well as my impression that easily 2-3 73s come for each 71. Further – the drop off in frequency after about 5:45 is really frustrating.
Great response from the MBTA and thanks for advocating for us. Its very nice to see an explanation for the upper and lower busway usage which has always been confusing to me.
I too am interested in the 71 statistics.
Maybe I missed it elsewher but it would also be good to hear an update on the progress being made on that condemned building so that we can re-open the main route on Mt. Auburn Street again.
The comment I made yesterday hasn’t been posted, but I can add today’s experience to the mix. I got to Harvard Sq. station at 5:12 this evening and the countdown sign on the bus platform said 73 Waverley 22 min.! A look at the MBTA Go app showed there were actually two buses coming at the time, but they were still at Waverley. There was another supposedly 4 minutes behind those. Meanwhile two 71 buses arrived together and then another one some time later. The two 73 buses did arrive together, and I managed to get on at 5:38. That’s 26 minutes waiting in the station during rush hour.
For those complaining about service on the 71, if you’re waiting for the 71 it will always seem like more 73s come, and if you’re waiting for the 73, it will seem like more 71s come.
I know of one bus driver who, in the past, has admitted that the 73 gets more service as, supposedly, that route has more riders.
Sorry for posting delay. Not sure why the system held it.
On Friday evening (11/21) I again got to Harvard Sq. just past 5 pm and the countdown sign again said “73 Waverley 22 min.” It’s a pattern.
I am adding my name to the list of people who have grown so inured to the decades of poor service on the 71 route, and so tired of MBTA promising but failing to fix the issues, that it doesn’t even seem worthwhile to point it out anymore. Another issue I have been noticing for a while is that although there are many drivers who are polite and drive responsibly, there are far too many who are gruff, yell at passengers, and drive recklessly and “roughly” (sudden stops and swerves, etc.) even when there’s no traffic around. Not saying they’re all like this because many of them are courteous and drive smoothly, but often it just seems like there’s a general disdain for the riding public on the part of the operators.
I will also often walk and beat the buses as noted by Susan Staves—most frequently to and from Watertown Square to beat the 71, and to and from Star Market to beat the 73. (I live closest to Belmont Street between Belmont Street and Mt Auburn Street. Happily, my experience with the bus drivers on each route is overwhelmingly positive. They consistently show patience with rude passengers, scofflaw drivers, and intractable construction delays, while showing remarkable courtesy to riders. Yes, occasionally one will seem tired of it all, but considering their ENTIRE DAY is the few minutes we spend on the bus, they deserve more credit than they receive. My greatest frustration is the unreliability of the Trip Planner app. Especially at rush hour when you need it the most it’s at its worst. Bus in 5 minutes? Don’t you believe it—it just went out of service. Galling.
Hi again Will. Thanks for following up on the first post on #71 and #73 bus routes dropped trips. I concur with Arthur, though, about our perception that Belmont has more busses: A driver (perhaps the same one) years ago told me as well that Belmont had more because it pays more in taxes(?) for them. So…money was their answer. Yeah. Maybe that has changed. If so, great.
Regardless…I looked up the MBTA bus schedule on GoogleMaps (I know GoogleMaps isn’t the MBTA…but surely this can be addressed as well since I bet a lot of us use it?) and there is NO mention of the rerouting of the #71 to Havard Square before/after the Mt. Auburn Hospital construction or the increase in time that that and whatever else is causing my route to go from 40 minutes to over an hour…getting me to work 20 minutes late regularly. And the schedule apparently went from 8:17 to 8:22 and 8:26 to 8:42. No bueno!
I am now taking the 8:04 bus instead of the 8:22 that used to get me there on time. This driver was not only on time, but pleasant/wished a good day, didn’t do the herky-jerky thing when stopping, and even lowered the bus BEFORE we got off. I want to commend him the MBTA and will do so if I get his name!
P.S. Hi David A!
Thank you for the chart.
But I would still want to ask, why the bunching at all? If it is that much of a problem, why can’t a dispatcher be on duty and say to the driver, “OK, the last bus was a 71. YOU are now a 73. Change the sign and don’t forget.”? That way, any bunching will be even and most people would be oblivious to it.
Also, IMO, the bunching going the other way should be fixed by giving drivers some self-determination/coordination. If it is obvious by the crowding that this is happening, the “first” driver shoud run express to only major stops, or a halfway point, and announce it so. The next driver might do every other stop or only to let people off. The next would run normally. This would allow some passengers to make up time, and it will spread the buses out more, fixing the bunching. Instead we have the leapfrog technique. Does that really work better?
I also love how, when there is an announced delay, the excuse is always “traffic”, traffic that mysteriously vanishes by the time you are on the next bus!
And if delays are frequent, and we have such things (as I KNOW we do) as “sacrifice routes”, then a less-frequent but more reliable schedule is always a better option. I’d be perfectly happy with a bus that runs every 15 minutes reliably than one that runs every 10 minutes but is a shot-in-the-dark. I just love breaking my — to make it to the stop for a bus that won’t be there.
BTW, the express idea is far from new. Trains used to do it all the time.
I live in Belmont. So 73 rider. I often waited at Harvard station for 73, and I always got the feeling there are a lot more 71 bus! For quite a few times, I took 71 to Cambridge Star Market, and walk about 20 minutes home to avoid endless waiting.
I checked their schedule and found they are the same, but the feeling is so real. So I understand 71 folks frustration.
I was a daily rider of the 73, 71, 70, and the old 70A (now 61) bus routes for well over a decade. Now only infrequently. Brigades/Bunches were always an issue, but the worst part is that they strike at the worst times. 3% drop rate sounds low, but the buses might run smoothly most of the day and then have 16% drop rate at rush hour which hurts, especially when you get OOS buses sprinkled in around the same time. The other terrible timing is incliment weather. Sometimes during Noreasters I’d have to still go to work and on many occasions I had to wait over an hour in the snow and wind. Miserable. And if I were elderly or infirmed it’d be downright dangerous.
I will add that the OOS scheduling at rush hour doesn’t makes sense even if you have additional manning because the buses make up a lot of the congestion at Harvard Sq. so having just a few empty buses in the mix makes the bad traffic even worse. Transitions should be off peak and scheduled breaks should happen outside of congested areas.
Senator,
Thanks for being as responsive as always.
Very few #73 riders complain (as here) and MANY #71 riders complain, and have, for years. I don’t believe this is a “grass is greener” issue.
There is a problem with #71 and what the MBTA is telling you doesn’t cut it. For the record, I have a doctorate that required me to study Ph.D. level statistics and publish articles in top tier academic journals. The data was in percentages the last time and I suspect that data provided this time (number of trips and passengers) was given in this format to confound the issues, not shed light on them. Unless MBTA provides mean, median, mode, and standard deviation, it is possible to manipulate data to prove anything they wish.
For example, today, standing at Harvard Square, I took (some, not all) photos of what they were posting about bus times. I reached when #71 was showing an arrival in 3 minutes and #73, 11 minutes (don’t have this photo). Soon, two #71 buses arrived and left without picking up passengers. SIMULTANEOUSLY, the wait time for #71 on the electronic display changed to 18 minutes. The #73 arrived and left on time. The #71 arrived 7 minutes later than my prior photo (also have this photo).
NOW to statistics. Consider the #71. Was it 10 minutes late or 8 minutes early? One of these two makes the MBTA look good–and they can tell you, “Look sir, no delays”–and one does not. Wonder who monitors the changing of the “arrives in 3 minutes” to “arrives in 18 minutes?” EASY to manipulate data.
Now on to the number of buses and passengers data. Again, without details, means nothing. If the two #71 that left today without picking anyone up at Harvard continued their trips, their “service” would count on that chart. The average passenger count would go down (wasted resource, could be put to better use!) because at least one of those two buses would go to Watertown Square nearly empty. Good statisticians say “Garbage in, garbage out” about such numbers.
Let’s assume the problem is bunching, as you have concluded. Question: Why hasn’t the MBTA learned what public bus operators in the European Union have known for well over 40 years?
In the late 1980s, I was on a bus in Vienna Austria. At one point it stopped at a stop and did not move even after passengers had boarded/disembraked. Curious, I asked why. A resident said, “Oh we are ahead of schedule. There are these big stoppage areas periodically along the routes of all buses. If a bus is early, it pulls in here and waits.”
There, bunching gone! All it would have taken in the last 40 years is for someone in power to ask, “I wonder how they do this in other countries?”
Today, with GPS, this is an even simpler fix, because each bus can be automatically monitored depending on not only whether it is ahead of schedule, but what the road conditions are. We even finally have many (not enough) cutout stoppage areas where the buses can stop without affecting traffic.
Well, there’s hope yet — it took 30 odd years for bike lanes and narrowing streets to slow down traffic, the cutout stop area and … to appear. By the beginning of the 22nd century, we might be able to stop bunching buses.
As far as the data is concerned, we can do a better job right now. Teaching some people who make these decisions basic statistics, Design Thinking and Queuing Theory may also help. This isn’t rocket science.
Curious how even the MBTA does not stand by their own data. I’m disappoint that you would find this data to actually tell us anything useful.
From the MBTA website –
“MassDOT/MBTA shall not be held liable for any errors in this data. This includes errors of omission, commission, errors concerning the content of the data, and relative and positional accuracy of the data. This data cannot be construed to be a legal document. Primary sources from which this data was compiled must be consulted for verification of information contained in this data.”
Surely somebody can do better.
What about the 70 Bus line from Central Sq to Watertown?
I see the same issues with reliability during the evenings on the way back from work. One time I kept walking towards home along the bus route while tracking Google and the bus never showed. I made it home in an and hour and half.
Will, I have the actual dropped trip data for the most heavily used bus routes for several years. It includes the 71 and the 73. They are nearly the same, in terms of the percentage of trips that are dropped. Both percentages are much lower than the average for the other routes.