Today’s news was like watching your first-born getting drafted or win an olympic gold medal!  Ok, that’s way over dramatic but I need you to understand my enthusiasm.  I got out of bed this morning a bit tired and a little grumpy but all that changed as soon as I start to flip through the news.  I absolutely couldn’t wait to get on the train, so much so that I took the 540 instead of the 6 am, so that I could blog about the big doings in Boston today!

“A bumper crop of nearly 380 million trips by riders over the past 12 months gave the MBTA its highest passenger count ever for a single fiscal year, T officials announced yesterday.”- Rising gasoline prices drive MBTA ridership increase – BostonHerald.com.

I have been following the rising passenger count of the MBTA on CarFreeBrad.com for a while now and the announcements just keep coming, which is great news!  But I have also addressed an enormous shortcoming of the MBTA use, the BIKE-FRIENDLY hours and accommodations.  Since the beginning of the MBTA in Boston, mass transit was convenient only to those whose office or apartment was within a short walk to a “T” station.

As someone who lived for many years in Back Bay/Fenway area, there is the issue of movement between neighborhoods that don’t have a direct line between them but are a bit too far to walk.  If you commute into the city and then want to quickly and easily get around(aka by bike), until now you were SOL because you can’t bring your bike on the commuter rail during peak hours and the “T” isn’t the most “friendly” environment for bikes.

Today both my old and new commuting issues look to be one step closer to resolution! The launch of Hubway Bike-Sharing in Boston now provides me, others like me and those that never thought of it before a way to bike around Boston without having to bring our bikes with us everywhere we go.  Find the nearest station and try one out!

Please check out the system and let me know about your experience so I can share it with the world!!!