Last week the House passed a bailout bill allocating $51 million from motor vehicle inspection fees to close the T budget gap. When combined with Senate legislation, this funding package will likely send an additional $ 7 million to the state’s 15 Regional Transit Authorities (RTAs).

As noted in Moving Forward with Funding, a MassINC report released last fall, the MBTA has seen a 16 percent increase in funding since 2009; in contrast, RTA funding has fallen by 5 percent over the period.

Long-term solutions to financing the MBTA have been put on hold until the next legislation session, but if the bailout compromise serves as an indication, those solutions may bring a more regionally equitable approach to public transit in Massachusetts.