Free buses are great for transit since transit funding is usually linked to ridership. Making buses free attracts more riders, which brings more funding, which brings demand for better transit, etc. It's a virtuous cycle, and if RI ever wants a real 21st century transit system, free buses are a great first step. Another inbuilt benefit of free buses is faster service. A lot of the delays on RIPTA are from waiting at stops for people to board and pay.

The R Line has been free for a while now and it's jam packed all the time. RIPTA needs to invest in some articulated buses short term for the R Line, and make an East-West R line to match that goes from EP to Olneyville. Both R-Lines would run on the same route between Providence Station and Lasalle Square, giving 5 minute headways on that corridor.