Customer Service

Reviewed and published by trentmaziarz, July 9, 2026. Discovered and drafted by our automated research pipeline.

The MBTA tested a generative AI chatbot developed by Northeastern University students that assists MBTA customer service representatives at The RIDE paratransit service by quickly retrieving policy information and answering frequently asked questions during live calls with riders. Customer service staff began using the chatbot during testing in 2024; as of the most recent sources it remained an internal tool for representatives, not a public-facing system.

Details

The chatbot was built by Northeastern University students in the AI for Impact Co-op Program as part of the Massachusetts InnovateMA government partnership. It takes natural-language queries from MBTA call takers as input and searches MBTA policy documents and websites to produce cited answers that representatives can relay to callers. The tool also generates lists of sources for further reference. The developers and Mass.gov confirmed the tool was being used by MBTA customer service representatives during testing in mid-2024 and was highlighted at a briefing with Governor Healey. As of the most recent sources it is not confirmed to be a permanent production deployment; the developers noted it could potentially be adapted for external use in the future.

Products affected

The RIDE (MBTA paratransit customer service)

Sources & Evidence

News Article

Northeastern at the forefront of Massachusetts' AI-driven economic growth, governor says in announcing AI Hub

Northeastern Global News·Dec 2024

https://news.northeastern.edu/2024/12/19/massachusetts-ai-hub/

News Article

Need info about the MBTA's paratransit service? A new chatbot developed by Northeastern students is speeding up the process

Northeastern Global News·Jun 2024

https://news.northeastern.edu/2024/06/27/ai-mbta-paratransit/

Company Disclosure

Governor Healey Meets with Northeastern Students Working with Administration on AI Project Under InnovateMA Partnership

Commonwealth of Massachusetts·Jun 2024

https://www.mass.gov/news/governor-healey-meets-with-northeastern-students-working-with-administration-on-ai-project-under-innovatema-partnership

Cite this record

Trace Foundation. (2026). Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA): The MBTA tested a generative AI chatbot developed by Northeastern University students that assists MBTA customer service representatives at The RIDE paratransit service by quickly retrieving policy information and answering frequently asked questions during live calls with riders. Customer service staff began using the chatbot during testing in 2024; as of the most recent sources it remained an internal tool for representatives, not a public-facing system (data as of 2026-07-09) [Data set record]. AI Trace. https://www.aitrace.org/r/practice/726ec981-2d20-4422-936b-88324f9895b7. Accessed October 7, 2026.

Stable link: https://www.aitrace.org/r/practice/726ec981-2d20-4422-936b-88324f9895b7
Data as of: July 9, 2026
Last verified: Not recorded

How to cite AI Trace

Other practices by Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA)

ProductivityThe MBTA integrated Spare's AI-driven platform into its paratransit service, The RIDE, to power real-time trip scheduling and dynamic routing for riders with disabilities across Greater Boston. The new system launched on August 30, 2025, replacing legacy scheduling software, and the MBTA confirmed it as its official transportation management system via a contract signed in December 2024.ProductivityThe MBTA integrated AlphaRoute's NDSP Optimization tool in 2023 to automatically determine each day which paratransit trips should be assigned to dedicated vehicles versus non-dedicated service providers such as Uber and Lyft. In 2024, the system optimized over 1.24 million trips, saving an estimated $22.88 per outsourced trip and reducing scheduling staff's manual work by 4–5 hours daily.Data AnalysisThe MBTA deployed a machine-learning system developed by vendor LYT that predicts when a bus will approach each intersection, enabling Boston's traffic management center to extend green lights for buses in real time. A proof-of-concept test on Brighton Avenue in Allston, running from July 2024, reduced red-light wait times by 21% and cut overall travel time by 8% on routes 57 and 66; the MBTA and City of Boston announced plans to expand the system citywide in January 2025.

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