Transportation is the top need for our patients at Lowell Community Health Center, with nearly 12,000 requests for assistance in 2024 alone. As one Lowell High School student shared, ‘If I didn’t get transportation assistance to attend my appointments, I would not be able to go. Boston is far away, and it costs a lot of money to pay for an Uber. We don’t have a car, and my parents do not know how to use the train.’ For many of the 41,000 patients we serve—96% of whom live at or below 200% of the Federal Poverty Level—the LRTA’s free-fare service is a lifeline, helping ensure they can access the care they need to stay healthy.