How to become a MART transportation provider for MassHealth rides
To become a MART transportation provider, apply online through MART's Vendor Management System between August 1 and April 30, because MART takes no new applications from May 1 to July 31. You must have run your own passenger transportation company for at least a year, hold a contract with a facility or agency, provide two Massachusetts good standing certificates, and carry insurance that meets state HST minimums.
On this page
Who MART is
MART, the Montachusett Regional Transit Authority, is a Fitchburg regional transit authority that also runs one of Massachusetts’ two Human Service Transportation (HST) brokerages. The Executive Office of Health and Human Services (EOHHS) contracts MART to arrange rides for people served by six state agencies: MassHealth, the Department of Developmental Services (DDS), the Department of Public Health (DPH), the Department of Mental Health (DMH), the Massachusetts Rehabilitation Commission, and the Massachusetts Commission for the Blind.
MART does not drive the trips. It assigns them to private transportation companies. MART handles HST service in 286 of Massachusetts’ 351 cities and towns, about 82 percent, which covers nearly 29,000 of the state’s 37,000-plus HST riders. Read our NEMT broker explainer if the broker model is new to you.
Where MART operates
MART brokers HST rides in nine counties: Berkshire, Franklin, Hampden, Hampshire, Worcester, Middlesex, Essex, Suffolk, and Norfolk. That covers HST Region 1 (Western and Southcentral Massachusetts) and Region 2 (Northcentral and Northeastern Massachusetts), including Metro Boston. GATRA, the other HST broker, covers Southeastern Massachusetts and Cape Cod. Our Massachusetts NEMT guide covers the rest of the state’s rules.
| Program | Who rides | How trips are awarded |
|---|---|---|
| MassHealth | Members with an approved PT-1 transportation request | Low-cost bid, as the EOHHS HST contract requires |
| DDS day programs | Consumers of 21 of DDS’s 28 area offices | Routes by competitive bid, about 70 providers |
| DPH Early Intervention | Children from birth to age 3 | Competitive bid, about 30 providers |
| DMH | Consumers going to clubhouses | About 15 providers |
| Rehabilitation Commission and Commission for the Blind | Consumers referred as needed | Competitive bid |
For MassHealth, the member’s medical provider submits the PT-1 online, and approval can take up to three business days.
How to become a MART transportation provider
MART splits onboarding into three phases: application, contracting, and contracted.
Application phase
- Check the basics. Your company needs at least a year of running its own passenger service and a current contract with a facility or agency. Time spent driving for a taxi company, Uber, Lyft, or another provider does not count.
- Collect your documents. You need two certificates of good standing: one from the Massachusetts Department of Revenue, renewed every year, and one from the Secretary of the Commonwealth. Add a W-9, professional references only, and a Supplier Diversity Office certificate if you hold one.
- Read the standards. MART requires every provider to agree to the HST Transportation Provider Performance Standards, MART’s additional standards, and its quality assurance and program integrity plan.
- Apply online. Register in MART’s Vendor Management System and complete the application on a desktop or laptop. MART reviews applications in the order received and usually decides within a week of a complete file.
Contracting phase
After approval, MART sends a contract for signature. You then finish credentialing, pass a desk audit and vehicle inspections, and attend mandatory Vendor Portal training. Your start date must be within two weeks of that training. The whole contracting and onboarding stretch typically takes up to 90 days.
Requirements you must meet
| Area | Minimum |
|---|---|
| Auto liability, demand-response trips | $250,000 per person, $500,000 per occurrence, $50,000 property damage |
| Auto liability, program-based routes | $500,000 combined single limit for 6 to 8 seats, $1,000,000 for 9 to 15, $5,000,000 for 16 or more |
| Workers compensation | Required for all providers, including sole proprietors, with a waiver of subrogation |
| Additional insured | The Commonwealth, EOHHS, the HST Office, and MART on auto and umbrella policies |
| Vehicle age | Under 15 years for demand-response vehicles; waivers of up to two more years in six-month steps |
| Vehicle equipment | GPS that reports location and actual arrival times to the broker and EOHHS in real time or near real time, a first aid kit, and a rider ID card with the complaint number |
| Drivers | At least 19, one year of driving experience including multi-passenger vehicles, CORI and SORI checks before any rider contact and every year, a seven-year driving history from every state lived in, and enrollment in the RMV Driver Verification System |
| Drug testing | Pre-contact, reasonable suspicion, and post-accident tests at an independent certified lab |
| Training | Yearly in-service training before any HST trip: defensive driving, safety equipment and first aid, accident and incident reporting, hands-on child restraint use, hands-on wheelchair lift and securement from a CTAA-certified or approved trainer, sensitivity and disability awareness, sexual harassment, and HST rules including HIPAA |
Training must be in place before your desk audit, and you arrange and pay for it. MART also re-checks wheelchair drivers on securement every six months. Our vehicle inspection checklist helps you prepare for MART’s inspection.
How trips reach you
MART posts trips to its Vendor Portal and assigns them through a competitive, low-cost bid system. It also uses automated vendor call-out, telephone, and fax. You must check the Vendor Portal daily and accept or decline work, because unaccepted trips are removed at a set time and ignoring assigned work can reduce your volume.
For MassHealth trips, your MART contract also requires the QRyde web portal and apps. Dispatchers use the QRyde Supplier app to accept work and send it to drivers, and drivers run the rides in the QRyde Driver app, which also gives you GPS tracking and confirmed trip data for billing.
Returning work has a cost. A same-day trip return generally brings an automatic returned-trip fine. Dropping a standing order takes three business days’ notice, or a fine applies.
MART’s rate sheet
MART changes its MassHealth vendor rates quarterly and posts each rate sheet for its period. The sheet for July 1 to September 30, 2026 lists, for each pickup town, destination, and vehicle type, a pickup fee, a per-mile rate, included miles, and a shared-ride rate. Dial-A-Ride and taxi are both ambulatory rates, and Dial-A-Ride pickup fares must include at least five miles. Chair car rates apply to certified wheelchair vehicles.
How MART pays providers
- Invoice on time. Submit invoices through the Vendor Portal twice a month or monthly, depending on the program, within two business days after each billing cycle closes. Your software must be able to download a CSV file.
- Add the cover sheet. Each invoice needs a cover sheet, which you can sign electronically in the portal.
- Bill only completed trips. No-shows and cancellations at the door are not paid. Shared-ride groups pay mileage on the group’s total loaded miles, split evenly among riders.
- Get paid. MART finalizes invoices within six business days of the cycle close and pays within 45 days of receiving an approved, finalized invoice.
Fraudulent billing, including trips the state’s compliance unit audits and finds false, leads to recoupment, fines, suspension, or termination.
What changed in 2025 and 2026
- Application window. From May 1, 2026, MART stopped taking new provider applications from May 1 through July 31 each year. The window reopened August 1, 2026.
- FY26 standards. The HST performance standards revised July 1, 2025 lowered the driver experience minimum from three years to one and no longer include the video-only recording rule that applied to day habilitation, DDS, and Early Intervention vehicles from July 1, 2024. Download the current versions before you apply.
- New rates. MART posted its vendor rate sheet for July 1 to September 30, 2026.
Provider contacts
| Purpose | Contact |
|---|---|
| Brokerage Division | 978-353-0333, 100 Main Street, Fitchburg, MA 01420 |
| Application and contract questions | Compliance@mrta.us |
| Returned trips and standing orders | Scheduling@mrta.us |
| Vendor portal technical help | techsupport@mrta.us |
Records that hold up in a MART audit
HealthRide’s trip log records GPS miles and pickup and drop-off timestamps on every leg, captures the rider’s signature on screen, and keeps the recorded wait time on each no-show. Export it as CSV or PDF from reports when MART or the state asks for backup.
Frequently asked questions
- When can I apply to MART?
- From August 1 through April 30. Starting May 1, 2026, MART does not accept new transportation provider applications from May 1 through July 31 each year, and applications reopen on August 1. Applications are online only, through MART's Vendor Management System on a desktop or laptop.
- Can I qualify with experience driving for Uber, Lyft, or another company?
- No. Driving for a taxi company, a rideshare app, or another provider does not count. MART wants a company you have owned and run yourself for a year or more, plus a signed contract with a facility or agency. Nursing homes, hospitals, day habilitation programs, school systems, and veterans organizations all qualify.
- How long does it take to start with MART?
- MART usually decides about a week after your application file is complete. If you are awarded a contract, contracting and onboarding typically take up to 90 days, and your start date must fall within two weeks of your Vendor Portal training.
- Does MART pay for no-shows?
- No. MassHealth pays only for rides actually provided, so no-shows and cancellations at the door are not paid, whoever is at fault. If only some legs of a trip are completed, only those legs are paid.
- How fast does MART pay?
- Providers submit invoices through the Vendor Portal within two business days after each billing cycle closes. MART finalizes invoices within six business days of the cycle close and pays within 45 days of receiving an approved, finalized invoice.
- What is the difference between MART and GATRA?
- They are the two Massachusetts HST brokers. MART coordinates trips for Western, Central, and Northeastern Massachusetts and the Metro Boston area. GATRA coordinates trips for Southeastern Massachusetts and Cape Cod.
