Getting around Boston by T, bike and foot
For most people who live in Boston, Cambridge or Somerville, a car is optional. About a third of households in Boston and Cambridge don't own one (Census, 2020 to 2024). The neighborhoods are close together, and walking, the T and Bluebikes cover most everyday trips. For the few trips that need a car, you can rent one by the hour.
Plan your first trips from a new address.
Shift shows what you can reach on foot, the closest bus or train and low-stress bike routes. Make more trips this way and you can unlock gift cards from local shops. Free.
How do people here get to work?
In Boston, about a third of workers drive alone to work. About 1 in 5 takes transit, and about 1 in 7 walks. In Cambridge, walking (19%) and transit (18%) are each about as common as driving alone (20%), and nearly 1 in 12 bikes. These are U.S. Census figures for 2020 to 2024 (Census Reporter).
People using Shift who live in these cities show the same thing for every kind of trip, not only the commute. About 7 in 10 of their trips were on foot, by bike or by transit, and more than 4 in 10 were walks.
About these numbers: From 12,256 trips recorded by 65 people using Shift who live in Boston, Cambridge, Somerville or Brookline, August 21 to October 16, 2026.
What's the cheapest way to get around?
Walking, for anything under a mile or so. After that:
- The T: $2.40 on the subway, $1.70 on the bus, or $90 a month for unlimited subway and bus rides. Through February 2027, if you switch between the bus and subway within two hours on the same card or phone, you pay only the higher of the two fares.
- Reduced fares: people 65 and older, people with disabilities, and people on SNAP, MassHealth and some other programs pay $1.10 on the subway, $0.85 on the bus, or $30 a month (how to apply). Children 11 and under ride free, and so do riders 75 and older who no longer drive.
- Bluebikes: $3 a ride, or $133.50 a year with 45 minutes per ride, at nearly 600 stations in 13 cities and towns.
Just moved? Unlock $15 for getting around.
Take 10 walking, biking or transit trips in your first 30 days on Shift and unlock a $15 reward: a gift card at a local shop, or a digital gift card you choose. Sign up by December 15.
After you install, enter the code NEWROUTES in the app so your reward is linked.
Get ShiftWhich neighborhoods are easiest?
The ones where shops, a T stop and a Bluebikes dock are all a short walk away. On walkscore.com's 100-point scale, Beacon Hill, Back Bay, the South End and Fenway-Kenmore score 95 or higher for walking and over 90 for transit. Davis Square in Somerville scores 97 for walking, and Cambridge as a whole scores 96 for biking. Central Maverick Square in East Boston and Uphams Corner in Dorchester both score 90 or higher for walking. (Scores as listed in October 2026.)
The same pattern holds beyond Boston. Town centers with a commuter rail station and Bluebikes, like Salem, work much the same way at a smaller scale.
Can a family with young kids do it?
Many do. Children 11 and under ride the T free, strollers are welcome on the subway, and most stations have elevators. For daycare drop-offs and groceries, many parents use a cargo bike (how families use them).
One thing to know before you rely on ride-hail: Massachusetts law requires a car seat for children under 8 unless they're over 57 inches tall, and that applies in an Uber or Lyft (state law). Taxis without child seats are exempt.
What about the trips that need a car?
Car-share services like Zipcar rent cars by the hour from lots across the city, with gas and insurance included. A regular rental works for weekend trips.
Try this first
Before you sign a lease, put the address into our trip planner with the three places you go most: work or school, groceries, and one place you love. It shows how long each trip takes by T and by bike.
Check an address
Enter the address you're considering and a place you go often. You'll see the trip by transit and by bike.
Try it
Shift finds the calmest way to wherever you're headed, by bike, on foot or on transit, and gives you credit for every trip you shift.
Not ready for the app? Plan a route on the Nearby page in your browser.
Related guides
How to pay for the T
Tap if you ride now and then. A monthly pass if you ride almost every workday. Transfers, Commuter Rail and reduced fares in plain language.
Bluebikes from start to finish
How to unlock, ride, dock, and avoid surprise charges with Greater Boston's bike-share. First-trip jitters, sorted.
What you can do with an e-cargo bike
An e-cargo bike replaces most car trips a family makes in a week. What they handle, and where to try one before buying.