The MBTA Will Save Us All (No, Really)

We, like everyone else in the city, like to give the MBTA a hard time. It’s never on time, sometimes the agency cancels service without telling anybody, and so on. T jokes are like mother-in-law jokes on sitcoms—the easiest way to get a laugh.

But now that gas prices are soaring, some who scoffed at us T-riding plebeians have come out of their high-horsepower vehicles and decided to ride the rails.

WBZ Radio reports that ridership on all services but the commuter boat is up an average of nearly 10 percent in the first two months of this year compared to last year. There are so many more riders on the commuter rail that the T has ordered more cars and is considering adding additional trains.

This is good news for the T, which can use all the increased revenue it can get to keep itself from sliding closer to financial ruin. Drivers will also benefit by having an alternative method of getting to work when gas hits $4 a gallon. And the polar bears are probably pretty happy too.