Poll: Massachusetts residents support policies to make transportation cleaner, more equitable, and more affordable.
Residents favor both low-income fares and fare-free buses, expanded commuter benefits, EV and e-bike rebates.
With concerns about the economy, inflation and gas prices on the rise, Massachusetts residents support a variety of measures that would make transportation more affordable, cleaner, and more equitable. These include transit fare discounts for low-income riders, making public buses free to ride, expanding commuter tax deductions for public transit and biking, and new state rebates for electric vehicles and electric bicycles.
Those are some of the major findings from a new poll of 1,002 Massachusetts residents fielded June 8-12, 2022. The poll was conducted by The MassINC Polling Group and sponsored by the Barr Foundation.
“We wanted to ask about several ideas that are being considered at various levels of government right now, and we found that residents are broadly supportive of them,” says Richard Parr, research director at The MassINC Polling Group, which conducted the survey. “At a time when concerns about gas prices and other costs are on the rise, these policies would help residents afford alternatives to driving gas-powered cars.”
Residents favor low-income fare discounts and fare-free buses.
The MBTA is studying low-income fare discounts and piloting free bus routes in certain Boston neighborhoods. Some of the state’s 15 Regional Transit Authorities (RTAs), which provide public transit beyond the T’s service area, have been running fare-free buses during the pandemic.
Large majorities favor discounting transit fares for lower-income residents (84% support) and making public buses free to ride (78%). Over half (56%) strongly support low-income fare discounts. Low-income fares are more popular than making buses free to ride, but residents do not see them as mutually exclusive. A plurality (43%) would like to see both policies implemented together.
Support for low-income fare discounts has increased slightly since a December 2021 poll, from 79% then to 84% now. Support for fare-free buses is much higher in this poll than previously found, but differences in question wording make direct comparisons difficult.
Reducing or eliminating fares is not free for transit agencies, which are also grappling with rising costs. A majority (70%) support increasing funding in the state budget for the RTAs to keep pace with inflation.
Residents support expanded commuter tax deductions.
Residents also support another proposal under consideration at the State Legislature to expand existing tax benefits for commuters. Under current Massachusetts law, commuters who drive to work can deduct mileage from their state income taxes, while those who ride public transit can deduct the cost of a transit pass. Three-quarters of residents (75%) support expanding that deduction to include transit fares paid per ride, instead of on a monthly or weekly pass. Nearly as many residents (70%) support making membership in bikeshare services, like BlueBikes, tax deductible.
“A weekly or monthly transit pass may not make as much sense for workers commuting only a couple times a week,” says Parr, “Making transit fares tax deductible might be more useful for some of these hybrid workers.”
Residents support EV and e-bike rebates, electrifying buses and trains.
The Legislature is also working on climate change legislation. Three-quarters (75%) support that bill including new state rebates for electric vehicles (EVs) in that bill, while two-thirds (67%) favor electric bicycle rebates.
EVs have gotten much of the attention in policy circles, but industry data suggest Americans are buying more e-bikes than EVs and plug-in hybrids combined. Popular as they are, e-bikes are not officially recognized under state law. The State Legislature is currently considering legislation to recognize and regulate e-bikes, which would bring Massachusetts in line with federal law and most other states.
After being given a description of e-bikes, just over half (51%) of residents are at least somewhat interested in purchasing one. Interest rises to 57% with a state rebate. Both of these figures are far higher than the 15% of residents who are currently riding a bike regularly. Current bike riders are even more interested in purchasing an e-bike with a rebate (80%), but a majority of non-riders (53%) are also interested.
Residents also want to see funding to switch other parts of the transportation system from fossil fuels to electric power in a climate change bill. About three-quarters support electrifying public transit buses and school buses (74% each) and the commuter rail system (73%). Support for these policies comes after an April poll found majority support for policies that would make new and renovated buildings cleaner and more resilient against the impacts of climate change.
Some other findings from the poll:
Just under half of residents (47%) think that the state is moving in the right direction, while a third (34%) think it is off on the wrong track. This split is nearly identical to what was seen in the December 2021 poll.
When asked to name the top issues facing state government, 16% of responses cited jobs and the economy, 15% mentioned inflation or the cost of living, 10% each mentioned housing costs or taxes, and 7% mentioned gas prices specifically. These economic concerns, along with the continued fallout from COVID-19 (7%), were the issues top cited. The rise of economic concerns is consistent with the December poll and with other recent Massachusetts and national surveys.
Nearly half of employees in the survey are still working from home at least a few days a week (47%). Even more (72%) would prefer to do so going forward if given the option. Despite this remote work trend, 45% of residents think traffic has returned to pre-pandemic levels, while 38% say it’s gotten worse. State transportation data confirms the public perception that traffic is back.
About the poll
These results are based on a survey of 1,002 Massachusetts residents conducted online June 8-12, 2022. Responses were targeted and weighted by race, age, gender, education, geography, and political party to reflect known and estimated population parameters for the adult population of Massachusetts. This poll was sponsored by The Barr Foundation.