Mbta

What Mbta does

The Mbta MCP server exposes Boston-area transit information from the MBTA v3 API through four focused tools. It covers the subway T, light rail, Mattapan Line, commuter rail, buses including the Silver Line, and ferries.

mbta_departures returns arrival and departure predictions for a named station or a place ID. A route filter can narrow results, such as checking Red Line trains at South Station. When live predictions are unavailable, the tool can use the published schedule instead, which is relevant for some commuter rail periods.

mbta_routes lists available MBTA routes, including route IDs, names, and the destination associated with each direction. mbta_stops returns the stops along a selected route in route order, with stop IDs, names, municipalities, and wheelchair accessibility information. mbta_alerts reports active service notices such as delays, shuttle substitutions, track changes, detours, and elevator outages, with optional route filtering.

How it works

The hosted connection uses the Pipeworx gateway at https://gateway.pipeworx.io/mbta/mcp. A client can call the MBTA tools through MCP, while the gateway endpoint also exposes shared Pipeworx tools. The gateway’s initialize response defines the exact tools available for a connection; the listed MBTA tools are the pack-specific capability set.

The same gateway also provides a full endpoint at https://gateway.pipeworx.io/mcp. Either endpoint can reach the broader Pipeworx catalog through ask_pipeworx, but the pack endpoint lists the MBTA tools directly. For applications that do not use an MCP client, individual tools can be called through the gateway’s HTTP API.

The local package speaks MCP over standard input and output. In that mode, it serves only the MBTA pack tools and does not include the gateway’s shared meta-tools or cross-catalog routing.

Setup and configuration

For a hosted connection, add the pack endpoint as an MCP server in a compatible client:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "mbta": {
      "url": "https://gateway.pipeworx.io/mbta/mcp"
    }
  }
}

For local stdio use, configure the package through npx:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "mbta": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@pipeworx/mcp-mbta"]
    }
  }
}

The package can also be started directly with npx -y @pipeworx/mcp-mbta. The documentation states that initial hosted calls do not require an account. Direct HTTP callers can post JSON to an endpoint such as /v1/tools/mbta_departures.

Tools and capabilities

The Mbta MCP server provides:

• mbta_departures for live predictions and schedule fallback at a station.
• mbta_routes for subway, light rail, commuter rail, bus, and ferry route metadata.
• mbta_stops for ordered stop lists and accessibility fields.
• mbta_alerts for current disruptions and route-specific service notices.

Route type filters distinguish subway or light rail, commuter rail, bus, and ferry services. Examples include Red, CR-Worcester, and place ID place-sstat.

Limitations and notes

The hosted pack endpoint includes shared Pipeworx meta-tools in addition to the MBTA tools, so its reported tool count is larger than the four-tool list. The local stdio package does not include those shared tools. Live departure data may be empty in some situations, particularly off-peak commuter rail service; the departures tool then falls back to the published schedule. Results depend on the MBTA v3 API’s available data and current service notices.