Franklin County is a nongovernmental county in the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Massachusetts. At the 2020 census, the population was 71,029, which made 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.
Hawley is a town in Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 353 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 county seat, and sole city, 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, the Franklin County Fair, and the Green River Festival. 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.
The Pioneer Valley Transit Authority (PVTA) oversees and coordinates public transportation in the Pioneer Valley of Western Massachusetts, offering fixed-route bus service, paratransit service, and senior van service. PVTA was created by Chapter 161B of the Massachusetts General Laws in 1974. Based in Springfield, Massachusetts, PVTA serves Hampden and Hampshire counties, and provides connecting service to CTtransit in Hartford County, Connecticut, to FRTA in Franklin County, and to WRTA in Worcester County. It is the largest regional transit authority, and second largest public transit system in Massachusetts after the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority, providing service to over 11 million riders annually across 24 municipalities in the region, with about 70% of all riders using the system as their primary mode of transit.
The Mohawk Trail began as a Native American trade route which connected Atlantic tribes with tribes in Upstate New York and beyond. It followed the Millers River, Deerfield River and crossed the Hoosac Range, in the area that is now northwestern Massachusetts.
Route 2A is a 98.5-mile-long (158.5 km) east–west state highway in Massachusetts. It exists in several sections, mainly as parts of former Route 2 that have been moved or upgraded. Route 2A runs from Greenfield in the west to Boston in the east. It formerly extended to Shelburne Falls in Buckland in the west, but as of 2007, the route terminates at Interstate 91 (I-91) in Greenfield.
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. The 413 numbering plan area constitutes local access and transport area (LATA) 126.
The Rhode Island Public Transit Authority (RIPTA) provides public transportation, primarily buses, in the U.S. state of Rhode Island. The main hub of the RIPTA system is Kennedy Plaza, a large bus terminal in downtown Providence, Rhode Island. Average daily ridership as of the third quarter of 2024 is 41,900. The agency operates 59 fixed-route bus routes and 7 demand-responsive routes, together serving 37 out of 39 Rhode Island municipalities.
The Lehigh and Northampton Transportation Authority (LANTA) is a regional public transportation authority that provides public bus and rapid transit service throughout the Lehigh Valley region of eastern Pennsylvania, including Allentown, Bethlehem, Easton, and their respective suburbs.
Worcester Regional Transit Authority (WRTA) is a public, non-profit organization charged with providing public transportation to the city of Worcester, Massachusetts and the surrounding towns. The WRTA was created in September 1974 under Chapter 161B of the Massachusetts General Laws. This act also created several other regional transit authorities in Massachusetts, including the Greater Attleboro-Taunton Regional Transit Authority and the Pioneer Valley Transit Authority among others; in terms of ridership, the WRTA is the second largest regional transit authority and third largest transit system in Massachusetts.
The MetroWest Regional Transit Authority (MWRTA) is a regional public transit authority in the state of Massachusetts providing bus and paratransit service to sixteen communities in the Boston MetroWest. The MWRTA was formed in 2006 and began service on July 1, 2007, with the purpose of filling a void in public transportation service in the MetroWest. Through a commitment to deliver expanded public transportation service to the business and commercial hubs across the MetroWest region, the goals and purpose of the MWRTA are embodied in its mission statement: "Build a public transportation system to deliver convenient and dependable service that enhances mobility, environmental quality and economic vitality in the region." Funding for the MWRTA comes partially from the state and local governments of the communities it operates within.
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 Amtrak Hartford Line trains.
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.
