Founded | 1978 |
---|---|
Headquarters | John W. Olver Transit Center, 12 Olive Street, Suite 1, Greenfield, Massachusetts, United States |
Service area | Franklin County, Hampshire County, Worcester County |
Service type | fixed-route bus service, demand response service, and paratransit service |
Routes | 7 fixed routes [1] |
Hubs | John W. Olver Transit Center |
Fleet | 8 buses, 32 vans [2] |
Daily ridership | 155,000 (annual; 2010) [3] |
Operator | Franklin Transit Management, Inc. |
Website | www.frta.org |
The Franklin Regional Transit Authority (FRTA) is a regional transit authority which provides public transportation principally to Franklin County and the North Quabbin region, both in Massachusetts. The FRTA is based in the county seat of Greenfield, Massachusetts.
Prior to the FRTA, Greenfield and its surrounding areas were served by the intermunicipal Greenfield and Montague Transportation Area (GMTA), an authority created with the purchase of assets of the defunct Connecticut Valley Street Railway in 1924. [4] The FRTA was established in 1978 with then implementation of Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 161B, which gave rise to several regional transit authorities throughout Massachusetts. FRTA is the largest public transit authority in Massachusetts by territory.
In 1999, the FRTA and the Fitchburg-based Montachusett Regional Transit Authority (MART) cooperated to form a route to Athol and Orange, Massachusetts, linking Greenfield to the MART terminal in Gardner.
Although not in the FRTA service area, public bus service between Greenfield and Northampton began in 2000.
In 2006, the FRTA assumed the responsibility of providing transportation services for the towns of Greenfield and Montague, when the former Greenfield Montague Transportation Area (GMTA) transit authority became unfunded by the state Department of Transportation. [5]
In 2013, Athol voted to withdraw from the FRTA service district, and instead voted to join MART, necessitating that the former Greenfield/Athol route be truncated in Orange.
FRTA public transportation service is available Monday through Friday. Fares on fixed route buses are free through June 30, 2023. FRTA is classified as a 'rural' transit authority.[ citation needed ]As of May 2023 [update] , there are seven active routes: [1]
The John W. Olver Transit Center houses the FRTA offices and the Franklin Regional Council of Governments, the successor organization to the Franklin County county government. It has provisions for local FRTA buses and Amtrak service, and links with Greyhound Lines for intercity bus service to Springfield, Boston and Brattleboro. All FRTA bus routes service the JWO Transit Center.
Franklin County is a nongovernmental county located in the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Massachusetts. As of the 2020 census, the population was 71,029, which makes it the least-populous county on the Massachusetts mainland, and the third-least populous county in the state. Its traditional county seat and most populous city is Greenfield. Its largest town by area is New Salem. Franklin County comprises the Greenfield Town, MA Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is included in the Springfield-Greenfield Town, MA Combined Statistical Area.
Buckland is a town in Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 1,816 at the 2020 census. The town shares the village of Shelburne Falls with neighboring Shelburne. The town center at Shelburne Falls is the western end of the Bridge of Flowers, a local tourist attraction.
Charlemont is a town in Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 1,185 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Heath is a town in Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 723 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Shelburne is a town in Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 1,884 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Sunderland is a town in Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States, part of the Pioneer Valley. The population was 3,663 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Greenfield is the only city in and the seat of Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States. Greenfield was first settled in 1686. The population was 17,768 at the 2020 census. Greenfield is home to Greenfield Community College, the Pioneer Valley Symphony Orchestra, and the Franklin County Fair. The city has a Main Street Historic District containing fine examples of Federal, Greek Revival, and Victorian architecture.
Orange is a town in Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 7,569 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Athol is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 11,945 at the 2020 census.
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Area code 413 is a telephone area code in the North American Numbering Plan (NANP) for the western third of Massachusetts. It is the largest numbering plan area in the Commonwealth, and extends from the New York state line eastward into Worcester County, while excluding the Franklin County towns of Orange, New Salem, Warwick, and Wendell, which use the overlay of area codes 978 and 351. The most-populous city of area code 413 is Springfield. 413 also includes Great Barrington, Greenfield, North Adams, Northampton and Pittsfield.
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The John W. Olver Transit Center, also called the JWO Transit Center, is an intermodal transit hub for Franklin County, Massachusetts. Located in Greenfield, it currently serves Franklin Regional Transit Authority (FRTA) local bus routes plus intercity bus service. Amtrak's Greenfield station is also located here, with one daily Vermonter round trip and two daily Valley Flyer round trips, which are extensions of Amtrak-run Hartford Line trains.
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The Connecticut Valley Street Railway was an interurban streetcar and bus system operating in Greenfield, Massachusetts as well as surrounding communities with connections in Deerfield, Hadley, Hatfield, Montague, North Amherst, Northampton, and Whately.