Undergraduate students at Tufts’ School of the Museum of Fine Arts will receive free, unlimited rides on local subways and buses beginning this fall. Tufts is the first school to partner with the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority for this two-year pilot program, called the “University Pass.”
“Our hope is that the MBTA UPass program will provide SMFA undergraduates with access to safe, convenient, and reliable travel at no additional cost to them,” Alyssa Baker, SMFA’s associate dean for student life, wrote in a statement. “The UPass program will give SMFA undergraduates full access to the fourth largest public transportation system in the nation, linking them not only to the resources of the university, but with opportunities throughout Boston.”
Over 50% of SMFA students use the MBTA at least several times a week for trips to and from the SMFA, according to outreach by Tufts’ transportation and parking team.
In addition to public transit, SMFA students have access to a free shuttle that provides regular trips between the Medford/Somerville and SMFA campuses. However, traffic and service disruptions mean that the shuttle is not always a reliable option, junior and SMFA student Luna Smith explained.
“When there’s traffic, it’s easier just to take the T,” Smith said. “[The UPass program] will be good just because we go to the Boston area often, so even if it’s not just going to SMFA … like a museum or something, that would be really helpful.”
Members of the SMFA Student Government Association, as well as Kunal Botla, the Tufts Community Union’s SMFA Community Senator, expressed the need for more accessible transportation beyond the shuttle service and worked with administrators to make the University Pass a reality.
“When we actually take the time to really listen to the demands and the needs of students and we allow students to really take root and have power on policy, we see effects like this,” TCU President Joel Omolade said. “I just really hope that this can be a lesson [to] a lot of administration, but also to students as a whole, that your voice really does have power.”
Tufts will pay the MBTA a flat monthly rate for the University Pass, with the pricing divided into two one-year terms. The first year’s prices are based on estimated student ridership data, while the second year’s rate will be based on actual data from the program’s first year. At the end of the two-year pilot, the MBTA will decide whether to expand the program.
With the amount of SMFA students using MBTA transit expected to increase, Tufts administrators are working on providing students with educational resources about how to successfully navigate Boston’s public transit system.
“Providing accurate, timely, and relevant information on how to access the MBTA, what to expect onboard, and where service runs will ensure that all SMFA undergraduates, even those with no public transportation experience, can benefit fully from this program,” Jason Novsam, Tufts’ associate director of transportation, wrote in a statement. “To that end, our team is working closely with MBTA staff to provide in-person and digital resources to the SMFA community.”
All SMFA students will be automatically enrolled in the program at the start of their fall semester, with the University Pass uploaded to CharlieCards.
“It’s hard to get from one campus to the other,” Omolade said. “I think this is one of the real, great first steps that students are doing … to really help bridge that gap and make sure these two campuses are more interconnected.”
