Open for Business: Harnessing Open Innovation at the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority

Still recovering from record-setting snowfall in the winter of 2015 that crippled public transit in greater Boston, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) faced a projected $335 million operating budget deficit and a $7 billion maintenance backlog. Searching for innovative solutions to these challenges, the MBTA decided to tap into the ideas of the constituents it serves, comprising some of the most innovative businesses and academic institutions in the country.