Boston, Massachusetts: MBTA Keeps Four Ferry Routes Running Through December 31

Four seasonal ferry routes that connect Boston with East Boston, Lynn, Winthrop and Quincy will keep running through December 31, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority announced on Wednesday, extending the season into the start of winter.

The extension covers weekday and weekend service on the East Boston route and weekday service on the Lynn, Winthrop and Quincy routes, according to the MBTA announcement. The routes had been set to wind down earlier in the fall under the seasonal schedule the agency published earlier this year.

What officials said

Governor Maura Healey said extending the routes into the winter gives riders in the four communities more options to get where they need to go, and she said the state would keep investing in transportation that connects communities and makes commutes easier. Phillip Eng, the MBTA general manager and the state's interim transportation secretary, said thousands of riders take the ferries and credited support from the Legislature with helping the agency build out its water transportation network.

The MBTA said riders can check ferry schedules online and use the MBTA Go mobile app for real time updates when planning a trip. The agency also reminded riders that bad weather and unsafe sea conditions can disrupt ferry service, and that it posts alerts when service changes. The announcement, as summarized in local coverage, also notes that no ferries will run on Thanksgiving, Christmas or New Year's Day.

The rest of the harbor network

Four other routes already run year round and are not affected by the extension. They are weekday service on the Hingham to Rowes Wharf route, the Harbor Loop route and the Hingham to Hull route, and weekday and weekend service on the Charlestown route.

For commuters in East Boston, Lynn, Winthrop and Quincy, the decision keeps a water route to downtown Boston in place through the end of the year, at a season when road traffic around the harbor tunnels and bridges is at its heaviest. The extension runs through December 31, 2026, and the agency has not announced whether the four routes will return on the same schedule next year. Schedules for the extended season are posted route by route, and the agency said the same timetable pattern holds through the final day of the year.