AASHTO Journal - MBTA, MassDOT Hold ‘Fill-A-Bus’ Holiday Gift Drive

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority and Massachusetts Department of Transportation recently joined forces for the 22nd annual “Fill-A-Bus with Gifts” holiday drive.

[Above photo by MBTA]

The holiday event allows MBTA and MassDOT employees to donate new gifts to children and teenagers in Greater Boston, with the bus stopping at both MBTA and MassDOT locations and facilities over the course of a week.

Left to Right: MBTA Graphics Design Manager David Wood; MBTA General Manager Steve Poftak; and MBTA Bus Operator Mike Broderick, who drives the holiday bus route each year. Photo by MBTA.

“For 22 years, the MBTA has participated in the ‘Fill-A-Bus with Gifts’ event,” said MBTA General Manager Steve Poftak in a statement. “This annual holiday event is especially meaningful because it’s employee-driven and an opportunity for employees to give back to our communities, sharing the holiday spirit with deserving children in Greater Boston.”

He noted that the donated toys and gifts benefit MBTA partner organizations at the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, the Boys and Girls Club of Boston, and Heading Home.

For 2022, MBTA and MassDOT employees donated nearly 2,450 gifts – the highest-ever toy count for the Fill-A-Bus gift drive.

“Organizing the ‘Fill-A-Bus with Gifts’ event is an opportunity to reach deep into our communities and give something back during the holiday season,” said MBTA Graphics Design Manager David Wood, who has organized this campaign for the last five years.

“It has been a joy to witness the kindness offered by so many of our Transportation peers at the MBTA and MassDOT in their gift giving, which benefits so many,” he added.

“The MBTA is a service provider, and our riders depend on us to get them where they need to go safely and reliably,” said MBTA Bus Operator Mike Broderick, who drives the holiday bus route each year. “During the holidays, I enjoy doing more. It feels like I’m the one making the list and checking it twice for the kids.”

State departments of transportation across the country participate in similar efforts around the holidays.

For example, District 1 leadership at the Georgia Department of Transportation recently came together to sponsor a foster child’s “Christmas Wish List,” while the Tennessee Department of Transportation recently wrapped up a gift collection effort on behalf of the “Toys for Tots” charity in conjunction with the Tennessee Department of Children’s Services.