Odd Ball Bus Routes

BostonUrbEx

BostonUrbEx

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I'm trying to find all of the MBTA's "odd ball" bus routes. Most of which are buried in regular bus routes' schedules or online. In fact, if you don't dig around online, I'm not sure how one even finds out about such routes.

170 - Alternate of Route 70/70A
Inbound: Waltham Square to Dudley Square
Outbound: Dudley Square to Waltham Square

171 - ?
Outbound: Dudley Square to Airport Station via Andrew and All Airport Terminals

191 - Alternate of Route 15
Inbound: Mattapan to Haymarket via Ashmont, Fields Corner, and Dudley Square
Outbound: Haymarket to Mattapan via Dudley Square, Fields Corner, and Ashmont

192 - Alternate of Route 39 (Does this still exist?)
Inbound: Cleary Square to Haymarket via Forest Hills and Copley Square
Outbound: Not sure if there was an outbound

193 - Alternate of Route 57
Inbound: Watertown Square to Haymarket via Brighton Center, Kenmore Square, and Copley Square

194 - Alternate of Route 89 (and 93???)
Inbound: Clarendon Hill to Haymarket via Sullivan Square

9109 - ?
Inbound: ?
Outbound: ?
Charlestown (Loop) to Powderhouse Square via Sullivan Square

9111 - ?
Inbound: ?
Outbound: ?
Charlestown (Loop) to Powderhouse Square via Sullivan Square

9701 - ?
Inbound: ?
Outbound: ?
Brighton Center to Ruggles Station via Mass Pike

9702 - ?
Inbound: ?
Outbound: ?
Brighton Center to Andrew via Mass Pike and Ruggles

9703 - ?
Inbound: ?
Outbound: ?
Brighton Center to Jackson Square via Mass Pike and Ruggles


Anyone know more details about the 9### routes? Or any additional routes?
 
The 19x routes are special early-morning runs of other bus routes. They go to or from downtown Boston, instead of to subway stations, before the subway opens.

I've never heard of the 9xxx routes -- where did you find them? I'm guessing that these are special school-day-only buses to serve public school students.
 
The 57 also has some weird deviations during the day into the fenway neighborhood.
 
The 85 takes narrow side-streets between Union and Kendall, rather than wider thoroughfares.
 
Found another


117 - See "a note"
Inbound: Wonderland to Haymarket via Bellingham Square and Maverick Square

117 - See "h note"
Outbound: Haymarket to Logan Terminal C


The first inbound and outbound of the morning, at 4:30am and 5:00am.
 
Commuting Boston Student said:
I think the 9### routes are actually 9#/## routes - i.e., 91/09, 91/11, etc.

Don't quote me on that though.
Click to expand...

Hmm, almost makes sense. But not quite. 91 doesn't go to Powderhouse, and there's no 93 even near the 93## routes.

BussesAin'tTrains said:
The 85 takes narrow side-streets between Union and Kendall, rather than wider thoroughfares.
Click to expand...

Only rarely? Or is it just a weird routing that always happens?
 
57 - See "l note" and "p note"
Outbound: Longwood/Harvard Medical to Watertown Square via Park Drive and Brighton Center
 
jass said:
The 57 also has some weird deviations during the day into the fenway neighborhood.
Click to expand...

I suspect these too are special routings for schoolkids, at Fenway High School and/or Boston Latin.
 
The 85 doesn't have any variations. There aren't really any "wide thoroughfares" between Union Square and Kendall. The CT2 takes the same route as the 85, but skips some of the stops.
 
Ron Newman said:
The 85 doesn't have any variations. There aren't really any "wide thoroughfares" between Union Square and Kendall. The CT2 takes the same route as the 85, but skips some of the stops.
Click to expand...

It should go straight through the Cambridge St intersection and take Columbia to Hampshire instead of taking a needless right on Cambridge for a half-block to go down Windsor, which is very narrow, one-way, and frequently has double parkers which can delay the bus. If there's a good reason for the zig-zag then fine, but it seems odd to me.
 
I suspect the 85 bus -- and the streetcar that it replaced -- long ago went straight up Webster Avenue in both directions, from Hampshire Street to Union Square. (There was no CT2 bus back then.)

Some time in the 60s or 70s, Cambridge removed a diagonal section of Webster Avenue entirely, between Windsor Street and Cambridge Street. The city replaced it with blocks of housing that are oriented to the rectilinear street grid. Oddly, there are still a couple of old buildings buried inside there with Webster Avenue addresses!

This Google satellite view will show you the area I'm talking about. I'd love to know the history here.
 
The 170 route used to be even more oddball. It traveled between Dudley Square and Bedford (and/or Burlington) via Back Bay Station, Waltham Center. From Waltham to Bedford, it went up Bear Hill Road, Second Ave, and a couple more streets before getting on I-95 north.

There were two outbound runs in the morning and one inbound in the evening. I regularly rode between Back Bay and Bear Hill Road. The outbound runs generally got me to work on time, but the inbound run could get delayed by traffic on I-95 and would arrive in a 30-60 minute window between 4:30 and 5:30pm.

Average number of riders was about 4 or 5 and it typically used the worst bus the MBTA had to offer. One of the buses could only get up to about 10mph going up Bear Hill Road.

We usually had a long stop in Waltham Center because the driver would have to explain to everyone trying to get on that it was NOT the 70 bus.

I believe the route changed to its current route in the 2006/2007 timeframe. It was very convenient for my carless self living in downtown Boston and commuting to I-95 in Waltham. Other options left me with an unpleasant mile or two walk on roads with no or unplowed sidewalks in the winter.

I stopped taking the bus when the Waltham Citibus started up and did the Bear Hill Road route with a connection to the Commuter Rail at Waltham Center.
 
BostonUrbEx said:
Found another


117 - See "a note"
Inbound: Wonderland to Haymarket via Bellingham Square and Maverick Square

117 - See "h note"
Outbound: Haymarket to Logan Terminal C


The first inbound and outbound of the morning, at 4:30am and 5:00am.
Click to expand...

I took that to Logan one morning for an early flight. With how early people have to get to the airport now before flights, I bet a couple early buses that leave from residential areas could do real well. Think Southie, back bay, central Harvard porter, Alston. A lot of people taking cheaper earlier flights whose price difference gets wiped out when you realize you have to take a $40 cab
 
gyro said:
the 9XXX routes are for schoolkids
Click to expand...

Can the public ride? Or is it restricted to schoolkids only? I know there's some buses in Wakefield and Lynn which only run on school days, but they're for all riding public.

Ron Newman said:
I suspect the 85 bus -- and the streetcar that it replaced -- long ago went straight up Webster Avenue in both directions, from Hampshire Street to Union Square. (There was no CT2 bus back then.)

Some time in the 60s or 70s, Cambridge removed a diagonal section of Webster Avenue entirely, between Windsor Street and Cambridge Street. The city replaced it with blocks of housing that are oriented to the rectilinear street grid. Oddly, there are still a couple of old buildings buried inside there with Webster Avenue addresses!

This Google satellite view will show you the area I'm talking about. I'd love to know the history here.
Click to expand...

Looks like the city did this to make room for public housing. Rather silly, IMO. The density of the housing could be significantly beefed up, while maintaining the street as it was, and house even more people with proper density.

fatnoah said:
The 170 route used to be even more oddball. It traveled between Dudley Square and Bedford (and/or Burlington) via Back Bay Station, Waltham Center. From Waltham to Bedford, it went up Bear Hill Road, Second Ave, and a couple more streets before getting on I-95 north.

There were two outbound runs in the morning and one inbound in the evening. I regularly rode between Back Bay and Bear Hill Road. The outbound runs generally got me to work on time, but the inbound run could get delayed by traffic on I-95 and would arrive in a 30-60 minute window between 4:30 and 5:30pm.

Average number of riders was about 4 or 5 and it typically used the worst bus the MBTA had to offer. One of the buses could only get up to about 10mph going up Bear Hill Road.

We usually had a long stop in Waltham Center because the driver would have to explain to everyone trying to get on that it was NOT the 70 bus.

I believe the route changed to its current route in the 2006/2007 timeframe. It was very convenient for my carless self living in downtown Boston and commuting to I-95 in Waltham. Other options left me with an unpleasant mile or two walk on roads with no or unplowed sidewalks in the winter.

I stopped taking the bus when the Waltham Citibus started up and did the Bear Hill Road route with a connection to the Commuter Rail at Waltham Center.
Click to expand...

Very interesting. And very odd, indeed. I never knew that about 170 -- and I can't imagine who came up with such a route?!

choo said:
I took that to Logan one morning for an early flight. With how early people have to get to the airport now before flights, I bet a couple early buses that leave from residential areas could do real well. Think Southie, back bay, central Harvard porter, Alston. A lot of people taking cheaper earlier flights whose price difference gets wiped out when you realize you have to take a $40 cab
Click to expand...

Absolutely. I can imagine some buses leaving Logan at perhaps 1AM (I think most flights stop arriving and all flights stop departing at midnight?) to get the last of the arriving passengers and airport staff back home. And then by the time they reach their endpoint, they'll prep to back inbound and arrive at the airport at perhaps 4:30AM (although that might not be early enough if your flight leaves the gate at 5AM?). In particular, I'd like to see the 459 (Salem Depot to Boston via Lynn) do this. I picture it as a 459/116 hybrid route which would hit the densest areas of Salem, Lynn, Revere, and Chelsea before serving part of East Boston, and then arriving at the terminals.
 
The density of housing in the block that used to contain Webster Avenue is about the same as the surrounding area. I suspect it has more housing now than when Webster sliced diagonally through it. But I'd like to learn more about the history of that area.
 
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