July 28, 2008 MBTA sets ridership record Play video

(NECN: Peter Howe, Boston, Mass.) - Thanks to rising gas prices, the MBTA says it hit an all-time high. Nearly 375 million people took the T in fiscal 2006, a 6% jump over the previous year.

The MBTA said the largest increases came in riders on buses and light rail, such as the Green Line.

State Secretary of Transportation Bernard Cohen says $4-per-gallon gasoline prices are creating major changes in travel behavior.

MBTA General Manager Daniel Grabauskas tells The Boston Globe that the extra fares aren't enough to solve all the agency's financial problems. The T was forced to deplete much of its reserves to bridge a $75 million dollar budget gap for the new fiscal year.

*Material from the Associated Press used in this report*