This service is fare-free starting March 1, 2022. Please be patient as we work on updating the brochure.
Medi-Ride is an advanced phone request service for MVRTA Special Services passengers which provides Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday service from the Merrimack Valley Area to Boston Hospitals and the Lahey Clinic in Peabody.
Brochure in English
Brochure in Spanish
Serving Boston hospitals and medical centers including:
- Massachusetts General Hospital, 55 Fruit Street
- Mass Eye and Ear Infirmary, 243 Charles Street
- Shriner’s Burn Institute, 51 Blossom Street
- Boston Medical Center, 1 Boston Medical Center Place
- Tufts New England Medical Center, 800 Washington Street
- Tufts Floating Hospital for Children, 755 Washington Street
- Beth Israel/Deaconess Medical Center, 330 Brookline Street
- Brigham and Women’s Hospital, 75 Francis Street
- Harvard School of Dental Medicine, 188 Longwood Avenue
- Children’s Hospital, 300 Longwood Avenue
- Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, 44 Binney Street
- Joslin Diabetes Institute, 1 Joslin Place
- VA Medical Center, Jamaica Plain, 150 Huntington Avenue
Days of Operation
- Monday
- Tuesday
- Thursday
Boston Hospitals
Trips available for appointments that start between 11:00 AM and 1:30 PM. All customers will ride the AM van trip to Boston, scheduled to depart the last COA pickup point at 9:30 AM and to arrive in Boston by 10:30 AM. Passengers with the earliest appointments will be dropped off first. The MVRTA van will begin circulating at 2:00 PM in Boston to pick up persons having completed their appointments, departing Boston no later than 3:30 PM.
Lahey Clinic
Trips available for appointments that start between 10:30 AM and 2:00 PM. All customers will ride the AM bus trip to the Lahey Clinic – Peabody, scheduled to depart the last COA pickup point at 9:30 AM and to arrive at the Lahey Clinic by 10:15 AM. The MVRTA bus will depart the Lahey Clinic no later than 3:00 PM. Depending on the appointment times for passengers scheduled each day, a mid-day return trip between 12:00 noon and 1:00 PM may be scheduled for customer convenience.
Cost
$8.00 cash one-way or $16.00 cash round-trip. The Medi-Ride service is supplemental to MVRTA’s safety-net ADA service, so no discount is available to ADA-eligible individuals. One companion may accompany you for a fare of $4.00, on a space-available basis. Please let us know if you will have a companion when making your reservation.
Equipment Used
The Medi-Ride Service uses wheelchair-lift equipped vans similar to the vans used in MVRTA Special Services service.
Eligibility
Anyone who is registered as a MVRTA Special Services customer, whether ADA-qualified or non-ADA (i.e., a Senior Citizen), will be eligible for the MVRTA Medi-Ride Service. ADA-eligible individuals will have reservation priority.
All MVRTA Medi-Ride customers must be pre-registered in order to use the service. Current MVRTA Special Services customers are already registered. Customers who are not current MVRTA Special Services users must register with the MVRTA Office of Special Services at telephone (978) 469-6878, “Option 3”. Registration must be completed and the data entered in MVRTA’s reservations system prior to any reservation for the MVRTA Peabody/Boston Medical Service being accepted. Customers should allow at least three weeks for the application to be processed and approved.
How to Make a Reservation
Call the MVRTA Office of Special Services at (978) 469-6878 Option 3. Reservations must be made at least one week (7 days) in advance, and may be made no more than 14 days in advance. Be prepared to provide the date of travel, the pick-up location, the destination (which medical center), the time of the appointment, and the physician’s or medical center contact information.
Three days prior to the customer’s appointment, the MVRTA Office of Special Services will call you to verify the appointment and give an estimated pickup time. Please be ready 15 minutes before the time given. Be advised that the van could be up to 15 minutes late.