BOSTON — The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority plans to move its Transit Police dispatching function to the private vendor IXP Corp., freeing up 15 officers to move to patrol as The T takes advantage of new abilities to outsource work, The Enterprise reported.

The $6.1 million contract would pay for three years of private dispatch and would include two one-year contracts of about $2 million. It is the first time since lawmakers suspended the so-called Pacheco law that the MBTA might actually take advantage of its freer hand to privatize services, according to the report. 

With 273 officers and jurisdiction in 175 cities and towns, the transit police is second only to the state police in the size of its coverage area, according to transit police Superintendent Richard Sullivan, who said patrols have been reconfigured to target times and locations with the largest ridership, according to The Enterprise. For the full story, click here.