Back Bay Logan Express Moves to New Location with New Customer Perks

Beginning May 1, the Logan Express (LEX) is moving pick-up and drop-off sites in Copley Square to just outside the MBTA’s Back Bay station. This partnership with the MBTA will provide a smoother transition for customers who use the Orange Line and Commuter Rail. This is part of the Massachusetts Port Authority’s (Massport) plan to encourage more passengers to use High Occupancy Vehicles (HOVs) to Boston Logan International Airport.

As of May 1, passengers who take the Back Bay LEX will get ahead of the security line when they arrive at Logan. The fee will also drop from $7.50 to $3 for a ride to the airport, and free from Logan to Back Bay.

“Our goal is to double HOV ridership by providing value-added choices for customers,” said Massport Acting CEO John Pranckevicius. “We want our customers to realize that dollar-for-dollar Logan Express is the best mode of transportation to get to Logan from Boston’s Back Bay. It is the most cost-effective, environmentally-friendly, and efficient mode of transportation for passengers and workers at the airport.” 

Logan Express is the seventh largest transit system in Massachusetts with four suburban locations in Braintree, Framingham, Woburn, and Peabody. Since 2009, LEX ridership has increased by 67 percent, from 1.1 million riders to 1.8 million. The goal is to increase annual ridership to 4 million.

The Back Bay LEX buses are scheduled every 20 minutes daily. The starting point for the bus route will remain at the Hynes Convention Center on Boylston Street with a stop at the Back Bay T Station on Dartmouth Street. Currently, Logan-bound passengers are picked up outside the Copley T Station and passengers from the airport are dropped off on St. James Avenue. Service from the Hynes runs from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. Trips from Logan start at 6am and ends at 10pm every day.

Martyn Roetter, chairman of the Neighbohood Association of the Back Bay board of directors, welcomed the news. 

“For some people, it might mean longer walk to the [new pickup and drop-off location] and a shorter walk for others,” Roetter said. “It’s an effort to do something to make public transportation alternatives more attractive…and I’m interested to see how ridership will change as a result of this.”

Also starting in May, Massport is increasing its Braintree LEX service with trips to Logan scheduled every 20 minutes. Additional parking at both Braintree and Framingham locations are also in the works. Braintree and Framingham are the most popular routes with over 740,000 and nearly 580,000 riders annually.

By next year, LEX service will also be available for commuters at North Station with connections to the MBTA’s Green and Orange lines, and the Commuter Rail. The fare will be $3 going to Logan and free from the airport. Other LEX locations are also being considered.  

The Massachusetts Port Authority (Massport) owns and operates Boston Logan International Airport, public terminals in the Port of Boston, Hanscom Field, and Worcester Regional Airport. Massport is a financially self-sustaining public authority whose premier transportation facilities generate more than $18 billion annually, and enhance and enable economic growth and vitality in New England.

For more information, visit massport.com.

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