Free of charge
Free roadside assistance in
Massachusetts: Highway Assistance.
MassDOT's 57-vehicle roadside assistance operation patrols 34 routes and provides free help for disabled vehicles and roadway hazards.
Official sources checked October 6, 2026Call 911 to initiate roadside emergency assistance on a covered highway and describe the route, direction and nearest exit or landmark.
Thirty-four patrol routes, including 13 major roads, the Massachusetts Turnpike and the Boston metropolitan highway and tunnel system.
Highway Assistance Patrol covers published commuter periods; I-90 Emergency Service Patrol and Boston tunnel Incident Response coverage operate 24/7.
At a glance
Key facts about Highway Assistance
This record separates the program operator, request method and actual patrol coverage so motorists can see what the published service does—and what it does not promise.
- Official program
- Massachusetts Highway Assistance Program
- Operating agency
- Massachusetts Department of Transportation
- Published cost
- Free of charge
- Service area
- Thirty-four patrol routes, including 13 major roads, the Massachusetts Turnpike and the Boston metropolitan highway and tunnel system.
- Request or dispatch route
- Call 911 to initiate roadside emergency assistance on a covered highway and describe the route, direction and nearest exit or landmark.
- Information checked
- October 6, 2026
Operator and base
Who runs Highway Assistance
Massachusetts Department of Transportation administers or operates this public motorist-assistance program. The service works through mobile patrol vehicles and traffic-management dispatch rather than as a repair shop that motorists visit.
The official program material reviewed for this page does not publish a public walk-in patrol base. Use the request or dispatch method above rather than traveling to an agency office for roadside help.
Patrol footprint
Where and when the service operates
Thirty-four patrol routes, including 13 major roads, the Massachusetts Turnpike and the Boston metropolitan highway and tunnel system.
Highway Assistance Patrol covers published commuter periods; I-90 Emergency Service Patrol and Boston tunnel Incident Response coverage operate 24/7.
The operating agency publishes coverage as a corridor, route or patrol-area description rather than a guaranteed pickup radius. A vehicle inside the described area is not guaranteed an available unit.
Published assistance
What Highway Assistance can provide
These services are summarized from the operating agency's current public information. The attending operator decides what is safe and available at the scene.
- Flat-tire assistance
- Emergency fuel
- Battery help
- Road-debris clearance
- Disabled-vehicle and incident support
Before relying on it
Coverage and service limits
- The available unit and service depend on the exact covered route.
- Basic free assistance is not comprehensive repair or destination towing.
- Call 911 only when safely stopped and explain that the request concerns a roadway breakdown.
If you are stranded
What to do before help arrives
These steps combine the program's published request guidance with basic roadside-safety precautions. Conditions at the scene always take priority.
- 01
Move as far away from live traffic as safely possible and switch on the vehicle's hazard lights.
- 02
Use the published request method for this program: Call 911 to initiate roadside emergency assistance on a covered highway and describe the route, direction and nearest exit or landmark.
- 03
Call 911 for a crash, injury, fire, vehicle in a live lane or any other immediate danger.
Primary-source record
Check the operating agency
Routes, hours and program rules can change. Use the official sources below for the latest operating information.
