In 2022, Field First was hired as a consultant by the Worcester Zero Fare Coalition to support their campaign to maintain fare-free transportation at the Worcester Regional Transit Authority (WRTA). In 2024, Field First leveraged the success of the Worcester Zero Fare Coalition program and was hired to assist the Bus Riders Coalition in Southeastern Massachusetts to maintain fare-free transportation at the Southeastern Regional Transit Authority (SRTA). Field First worked as project managers on both campaigns to support and empower the leadership and work of both coalitions.
The Goal
In 2023, the Worcester Regional Transit Authority’s fare-free bus program, piloted during the beginning of the pandemic in 2020, was set to end. The Worcester Zero Fare Coalition’s goal was to ensure that fare-elimination continued as the Worcester Regional Transit Authority was deliberating their FY24 budget.
The Challenge
Regional Transit has historically been underfunded in Massachusetts. Due to the underfunding of these services, most regional transit authorities (RTAs) statewide pre-pandemic were heading towards a death spiral due to low ridership, no reliable service and the prohibitive cost of transit fare. During the pandemic, the WRTA received an unprecedented amount of federal funding through ARPA and CARES Act programs which allowed the WRTA to go fare-free in 2020 and maintain it for 3 years.
While riders, advocates, elected officials (local, state and federal), large regional employers and businesses all supported the continuation of the fare-free program, the Administrator and Advisory Board of the Worcester Regional Transit Authority did not, despite seeing the success of the program. The Administrator even signed a contract with a contactless fare collection company in the Spring of 2023.
A problem the Worcester Zero Fare Coalition ran into was the constant pitting of fare-free service against other service changes and expansions. It was up to Field First and the Coalition to make the case that RTAs could have both fare-free and enhanced services.
Our Strategy
In both regions of the state, we realized that in order to be successful we needed to a build broad, cross-sector coalition to showcase the breadth of support for free-fares, prove that there is funding to continue the programs and educate and prove to the WRTA Administrator and Advisory Board members on the benefits of continuing fare-free transit.
Our campaign tactics included:
- Messaging development and a strong cross-platform media campaign highlighting the benefits of fare-free transit and why there needs to be greater investments in regional transportation
- Public opinion research to showcase the broad, bi-partisan support for free-fares
- Research that proves continuing fare-free transit is the benefits of fare-free transit and how its the cost-effective pathway forward compared to means-based and full fare-collection
- Robust grasstops outreach to the Administrators and Advisory Board members to educate them on fare-free transit and address any concerns they have
- Press and sector-specific events to highlight the breadth of support for free-fares
- State budget advocacy to ensure that there is funding to continue the program
Our Work
In 2022, Field First stepped in to manage the campaign and worked across departments to drive the campaign forward. Field First made an immediate priority of developing a cohesive campaign plan which included campaign planning, strategy development, creating a campaign plan and timeline, material creation, research, messaging development. Field First went to work executing the plan. Field First met weekly with the coalition leadership and planning committee to support weekly progress to goals.
Field First worked with the coalition to successfully engage diverse stakeholders, including traditional allies and “unlikely” partners such as major regional employers, the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce, climate justice organizations, senior centers, and racial justice groups. This diverse backing highlighted the broad benefits of fare-free transit, such as improved accessibility, economic growth, and environmental sustainability. By uniting these groups, through earned media, press and sector-specific events, the coalition was able to showcase the policy’s value and apply pressure to the WRTA Administrator and Advisory Board.
A critical component of the coalition’s strategy was engaging with the Advisory Board, which oversees the regional transit authority’s budget and plays a key role in continuing fare-free transit. Field First led targeted outreach to individual board members, emphasizing the positive impacts of fare-free transit and addressing concerns. Field First also developed a support tracker to track support levels and progress to goals, preparing for both majority rule and weighted voting scenarios. These efforts ensured consistent majority support for fare-free transit, avoiding the need for a weighted vote.
Field First utilized research from the Worcester Regional Research Bureau and developed two polls with MassINC Polling Group to inform the coalition’s messaging, communications, written and print materials and media. Through the research, the coalition was able to prove the argument that fare-free transit is the best policy to implement comparatively to income-based and that there is enough funding to continue this program. Through the polls, the coalition was able to show the broad, bipartisan support from riders and non-riders, and that if fare-free was removed, over a third of riders would stop riding the WRTA.
Our Outcomes
Through all the advocacy efforts, the Worcester Zero Fare Coalition has been able to win two additional extensions of fare-free bus WRTA bus service with unanimous support from the WRTA Advisory Board. The coalition’s successful advocacy to ensure fare-free WRTA service has made the Worcester Regional Transit Authority the longest running fare-free regional transit system in the United States. The overwhelming success of fare-free transit and our statewide earned media campaign has resulted in total increased funding for regional transit authorities statewide, and funding for thirteen regional transit authorities to create or maintain fare-free programs.