Ridership for Berkshire public bus system hits record high

A new report from the Berkshire Regional Transit Authority says over 666,000 passengers used its bus network between July 2025 and the end of June 2026, with over 2,100 county residents using the service daily. That's an 8.6% increase over the prior fiscal year and part of 24% growth over the past two. Its paratransit service has seen a similar bump, with an 18% increase since fiscal year 2024 and over 200 riders a day. The total annual ridership figure of over 731,000 across the BRTA's services is a record for the Pittsfield, Massachusetts-based agency that operates in one of the poorest and most sparsely populated regions of Massachusetts.