Illustration of a red city bus and bus shelter representing the Boston Link Bus plan

Boston Link Bus and Street Furniture Plan Explained

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The City of Boston said it will launch its free Boston Link Bus shuttle service in neighborhoods with limited transit by early next year, funded by $11.5 million in federal money, while a separate procurement is seeking a company to replace the city’s 25-year-old bus shelter and street furniture contract. Together with ongoing MBTA construction, the actions mark a busy stretch for Boston’s streets and transit planning. This report lays out what each program includes, who is paying, what the officials involved have said and which dates are still ahead, based on city documents and outside reporting.

Part of our Boston News coverage — read the full guide: Boston Transportation and MBTA Guide.

Boston Link Bus: Five Free Shuttle Routes Planned

The Boston Globe reported on Oct. 9 that the city’s free shuttle service is planned for the Seaport, Roxbury, Mattapan and other neighborhoods, with five routes to run over three years using $11.5 million in federal money first awarded through the Federal Highway Administration nearly two years ago. Mayor Michelle Wu’s administration told the Globe the service would start by early next year.

The Globe described these details from a presentation city officials released last month:

  • Allston-Brighton: free shuttles running north-south from Harvard Square to Washington Square and east-west from Coolidge Corner to Oak Square, with a stop at the Boston Landing commuter rail station. Matt Moran, a director in the Boston Transportation Department, said Boston Landing connects to only one bus today.
  • Seaport Circulator: a loop of the waterfront neighborhood supplementing Silver Line buses, with stops at South Station, the Menino Convention and Exhibition Center, Commonwealth Pier and Seaport Boulevard, according to Pat Sullivan, who helps oversee the transportation management associations running the Seaport route.
  • Charlestown and the “lower Mystic”: a route from Assembly Row to North Station with stops at Sullivan Station, Hood Park, City Square in Charlestown and the Navy Yard. A separate “Lower Mystic Link,” launched last November with $200,000 in state grant money, connects the Bunker Hill Housing development on Medford Street with the Market Basket in Chelsea and will continue to run.
  • Roxbury and Mattapan: operators will be selected through a competitive procurement, and the routes have not been finalized. Moran said the city will hold public meetings in Grove Hall and Mattapan before setting those routes.

Wu said in a statement that residents need “more reliable and affordable transportation” and that the Link Bus program “will bring free transportation services directly into our neighborhoods, strengthen connections to the MBTA, and make it easier to get to work, school, appointments, and local businesses.” Moran said at a Boston Planning & Development Agency meeting last month: “We’re not looking to duplicate MBTA services. We’re looking to really add services to areas of the city that haven’t traditionally had a lot of good transit.” The Globe noted that the city also runs a pilot of three fare-free buses that has been repeatedly extended, including through the end of this year. Once routes launch, the city said it will post schedules and stop locations on its website. The exact service details are still being finalized.

The shuttles arrive as the MBTA seniors’ free-fare program begins; see Boston MBTA Free Fares for Car-Free Seniors Start Oct. 13.

Street Furniture Contract: What the City Is Seeking

The City of Boston announced a request for proposals for a new Street Furniture Program, released Sept. 7, 2026. The city says it wants a business partner to upgrade and expand its network of bus shelters, wayfinding kiosks and other amenities in the public right-of-way, and that the program would be “self-sustaining through advertising revenue.” Responses are due Nov. 4.

According to the city’s announcement, the original program, launched in 2001, resulted in more than 360 bus shelters, six self-cleaning public toilets and dozens of city information panels, all maintained through advertising revenue. The city cited the Outdoor Advertising Association of America as reporting that out-of-home advertising generated $2.12 billion in the first quarter of 2026, with street furniture revenue up 11.5% year over year, and that more than $137 million was spent on out-of-home advertising in the Boston market in 2025. Wu said in the announcement that the RFP “connects essential street amenities with public art to make street infrastructure more comfortable, inviting and accessible.”

StreetsblogMASS reviewed the 74-page RFP and reported these provisions:

  • A goal of installing “over 500 additional” bus shelters over the new contract term, with named priorities including the Route 23 corridor on Washington Street in Dorchester and Warren Street in Roxbury.
  • Real-time transit and travel information at all of the winner’s bus shelters. StreetsblogMASS put the current number at about 281 shelters.
  • Pricing and conceptual designs for 40 standalone shade structures, and maintenance and expansion of green roofs on bus shelters, building on 30 added in 2024 along the Route 28 line in Mattapan and Roxbury.
  • Bike parking shelters, with 20 planned in activity centers such as the Seaport and the Longwood Medical Area, and possible takeover of the city’s age-friendly bench program, which has installed over 100 benches since 2019.
  • Designs for mobile, modular street furniture for major events and “during major MBTA diversions, long-duration construction, and other service disruptions.”
  • More digital screens and fewer newsstands.

The shelter figures come from different points in time. The city’s release refers to more than 360 shelters deployed under the program since 2001, while the city’s Coordinated Street Furniture page lists the current inventory as 281 bus shelters, 106 city information panels, three newsstands and 47 digital billboards, among 441 pieces of street furniture in all. That page says the program has generated $36,637,430 in revenue for the city.

The Money: Fees, Ad Market and Timeline

StreetsblogMASS reported that since 2001 the city has had a contract with outdoor advertising company JCDecaux, which pays a fixed $1.5 million annual fee plus a percentage of local advertising revenue, totaling $2.7 million for the city in 2025. The contract expires May 1, 2027. The RFP cites industry data estimating the Boston outdoor advertising market at $136 million a year, with strong growth in digital screens, and StreetsblogMASS said City Hall appears to see itself in a strong bargaining position. In 2025 the city issued a non-binding request for information to which six national outdoor advertising firms responded, including JCDecaux and Intersection, which manages advertising for the Bluebikes system and MBTA-owned bus shelters.

Hoodline’s summary of the RFP likewise reported the 500-shelter target and the Dec. 16 selection date. The timeline reported so far: a virtual question-and-answer session on Sept. 23, proposals due Nov. 4, and a target of Dec. 16 to select a preferred contractor, according to StreetsblogMASS. Separately, Mayor Wu sent the City Council a request on Oct. 7 (Docket 1886) for permission to enter a contract longer than three years for the program. The Boston Policy Institute summarized the mayor’s letter as describing an initial 10-year term from May 2027 to April 20, 2037, with two five-year options for the city. Council action on that request would come after committee review. For the full agenda, see our report on the Oct. 7 City Council meeting.

The same council agenda included Docket 1883, a request to accept a $3.25 million grant from the Metropolitan Area Planning Council for e-bikes and spare batteries for the bikeshare system, per BPI.

MBTA Construction Affecting Boston Riders

The MBTA’s October construction announcement, posted Sept. 18 and updated Sept. 25, lists work affecting Boston riders:

  • Green Line signals: work continues to replace the central tunnel’s more-than-100-year-old signal system. The MBTA says the new system is compatible with the upcoming Type 10 cars and provides a foundation for improved service frequency. Service on the B, C, D and E branches will be suspended again the weekend of Oct. 31-Nov. 1 after the nine-day suspension from Sept. 26 to Oct. 4. We covered that closure in MBTA Green Line Core Shutdown Runs Through Oct. 4.
  • Symphony Station: closed until spring 2029 for upgrades that include four new elevators, with E branch trains bypassing the station. The MBTA suggests riders use Northeastern University or Prudential stations, the Orange Line at Massachusetts Avenue or Route 39.
  • C Branch accessibility: work at seven above-ground stops along Beacon Street in Brookline, with outbound bypasses at Hawes Street and Saint Paul Street scheduled Oct. 19-Nov. 7.
  • Blue Line: single-tracking between Revere Beach and Wonderland on the weekends of Oct. 3-4 and Oct. 17-18 for switch work at Wonderland.
  • Commuter rail: South Station signal and track work affects the Needham, Greenbush, Kingston, Stoughton and Franklin/Foxboro lines, including no service on several Needham, Greenbush, Kingston and Stoughton segments on Oct. 16, 19, 23 and 26, and Framingham/Worcester service suspended between Framingham and South Station the weekend of Oct. 17-18.

The MBTA says multi-day outages are the most efficient way to do the work because it cannot be completed in overnight hours when the system does not operate.

On new vehicles, Hoodline reported that the first Type 10 pilot cars arrived at the Riverside maintenance facility in Newton on Sept. 30 to begin track testing. It said the fleet of 102 light rail vehicles is being built by CAF USA in Elmira, New York, under an $810.9 million contract approved in August 2022, citing Mass Transit Magazine, with passenger service expected in early 2027 and full delivery by 2031 per the MBTA’s project timeline.

Other city street projects we have covered include the Columbus Avenue bus lane design in Roxbury and the Blue Hill Avenue bus lane.

What Comes Next

  • Early 2027: the city’s target for the first Link Bus routes, with Roxbury and Mattapan routes dependent on community meetings and procurement.
  • Nov. 4: street furniture proposals due, with a preferred contractor targeted for Dec. 16.
  • Council committee review: of Docket 1886 and the bikeshare grant request.
  • Oct. 17-18 and Oct. 31-Nov. 1: MBTA weekend service changes affecting the Blue, Green and commuter rail lines.
  • End of 2026: the current end date of the three-bus fare-free pilot, per the Globe.
  • May 1, 2027: expiration of the JCDecaux contract.

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