Published July 12, 2011
The MBTA needs money, so the transit authority is selling naming rights to lines and stations within its subway, bus and commuter systems. Every station is up for grabs, so if you want to name a T stop, step right up! But make it quick; bids must be in by tomorrow.
MBTA General Manager Richard Davey hopes naming rights will raise about $250,000 for the authority, the Herald reports. The T needs all the dollars it can come by; its budget gap for FY2013 is expected to be $137 million.
The naming-rights sale is just the latest money-making plan by the authority. The MBTA online souvenir store is already up and humming. There you can buy a vintage T sign for upwards of $2,500, or a Rapid Transit Lines tote bag for $14.95, or MBTA greeting cards and shower curtains. The MBTA is also selling advertising space on its website and on the back of Charlie Cards, and is weighing selling audio ads on its buses.
Mind getting off at JP Licks Circle or Mrs. Fields Corner? Check out Universal Hub’s mockup of an imagined “new ‘n’ improved” MBTA map.