Mass transit in Cape Cod, Massachusetts is in trouble. The Flex bus, which serves the Lower Cape from Harwich to Provincetown, first went into service in May, 2006. A recent audit conducted by the Cape Cod Regional Transit Authority (RTA) concluded that the service’s budget is $1 million in the red.

All Lower Cape towns served by the Flex pay a fee based on ridership. The RTA anticipated the state of Massachusetts would chip in $1 million to cover 80% of operating costs; but that hasn’t happened.

 

Robert Gayton, RTA's accountant, recommends an immediate shutdown of the Flex. According to Gayton, the Flex may run into “bankruptcy, employees not getting paid and legal action against everyone and everything. We do not have the same protection that a government has.”

 

Cape Cod’s layout consists of inadequate, narrow highways and twisty backcountry roads. Houses are spread out and shopping is largely clustered together in shopping malls that encourage driving. These factors make public transportation sound like a pipedream, however when summer traffic chokes area roads in this extremely popular beach get away, getting on a bus starts to sound more appealing.

 

If Mass Coastal Railroad can get approval to renew the defunct train lines that run to Cape Cod, and the various RTA bus lines can actually get some funding, mass transit could change the face of the Cape and make family vacation time a whole lot less stressful. Mass Coastal was recently awarded the contract for Cape Cod trash removal via train and they currently run Cape Cod Central Rail which provides scenic tours and dinner trains.

 

Although Cape Cod does not fit the standard mold of dense urban living which meshes so well with public transportation, a well thought out system would for well with the long, narrow geography. Insane traffic headaches necessitate a change, we’ll see if Massachusetts is smart enough to encourage transportation that works.