Boston Subway Map 2024 – Timetable, Tickets & Prices

The Boston subway is a true monument to American history. The metro system is the oldest subway in the USA. It opened on September 1, 1887, just before the Chicago subway.

Opened at the time as the “Street Subway”, the route is still part of the so-called Green Line with the oldest subway tunnel in the USA. Alongside the three modern metro lines, it is a special feature on the Boston Metro Map. The Green Line is actually an S-Bahn line, but a large part of it runs underground. At 37 kilometers, it is not only the longest, but also the busiest subway line in Boston, carrying around 230,000 passengers a day.

All lines are operated by Massachusetts Bay Transportation (MBTA). The subway network, affectionately known by Bostonians as “The T” or “Boston T”, stretches over a total length of around 120.3 kilometers. With 200,000 passengers per day, the Orange Line has the second largest passenger volume after the Green Line. The metro lines on the Boston Metro Map can only be distinguished by their color. To avoid confusion with other public transport lines, travelers should therefore remember the Red Line, the Blue Line, the Orange Line and the Green Line.

The Boston subway lines at a glance

• Red Line (Alewife ↔ Ashmont)
• Orange Line (Oak Grove ↔ Forest Hills)
• Blue Line (Bowdoin ↔ Wonderland)
• Green Line (Boston College ↔ Lechmere)

Boston owes its popularity as a travel destination and place to work and study not least to its famous universities. Harvard University and the New England Conservatory are particularly famous. However, it is not just students and commuters who use the transportation services of the “Boston T”. There are also plenty of tourists who want to see historically significant sites such as the Old State House, the Freedom Trail, Faneuil Hall or the USS Constitution.

Accordingly, the number of people in Boston who use the Metro Map is also increasing. This is comparatively easy to accomplish due to the small number of lines. The most important connection for tourists is undoubtedly the Blue Line between the airport and the city center at the Government Center stop.

With a population of just over 600,000, Boston is not exactly a small town. Nevertheless, the simplicity of the tariff system is very reminiscent of this. Instead of a complex system with several tariff zones, a flat-rate billing system is used. This also makes it much easier for non-residents to use the metro in Boston. This also limits the choice of tickets to a minimum.

They are valid for both the subway and the bus lines. In addition to one-way tickets, the operating company MTBA only offers daily, weekly and monthly tickets. Tickets are cheaper for senior citizens, the disabled and students. Boston’s subway is also very family-friendly. Children up to the age of 11 can travel free of charge on the metro.

If you want to buy a metro ticket in Boston, you have several options. The most common option is to buy classic paper tickets, known as Charlie tickets. They are available from the ticket machines in front of the entrances to the subway platforms. If there is no ticket machine and validator to be found on a subway platform, tickets can often also be purchased on board the trains. However, only tickets with a value of up to 20 US dollars can be purchased at the ticket machines on board.

Using the CharlieCard is much more convenient. This is a rechargeable chip card that can be used to book tickets and also serves as a travel pass. It can be used as a one-way ticket, day ticket, weekly ticket and monthly ticket. The CharlieCard is particularly attractive because of the discount on the price of single trips. The CharlieCard is also validated or activated at the electronic access barriers to the platforms. There are no smartphone tickets for the metro in Boston, nor are there any special combined tickets for tourists. Such tickets are usually associated with discounts for attractions.

The Green Line starts its service at around 5:00 am. Service on the three remaining lines on the Boston Metro Map begins between 5:15 and 5:30 a.m. This regulation applies on the Green Line and Blue Line seven days a week. On the Red Line and the Orange Line, however, the first trains on Sundays do not depart until an hour later at around 6:00 am. Both during the week and at weekends, all lines run until around 1:00 a.m. or 1:30 a.m. at night.

The frequency of the four metro lines on the Boston Metro Map varies throughout the day between a 3-minute interval during rush hour and a 9-15-minute interval in the late evening and night hours. So if you want to be out and about in Boston after 1:00 a.m., you have to use one of the city’s many cabs or the Uber service.

To the timetables of the Boston Metro lines:

Red Line, Orange Line, Blue Line, Green Line

The saying “other countries, other customs” applies not only to the USA in general, but also to the metro in Boston. There are some rules that may seem strange to the average European at first. Eating on the Boston subway is not prohibited, but if the food smells too strong, the employees of the operating company can issue a warning. Incidentally, no one should put up any resistance, as these employees are official security guards from the MBTA Police Department.

So safety on board is also well taken care of. Very loud conversations that disturb the other passengers are also worthy of a warning. Playing music loudly is prohibited both at subway stations and on the trains themselves. No less unusual is the clear permission to put your feet up on the seat, provided the subway carriage is largely empty.