Boston got a taste of what a later last call looks like — and it worked.

When Governor Maura Healey signed legislation in early June allowing bars and restaurants to serve alcohol until 3 a.m. through July 31, it was meant to support the city during the FIFA World Cup and the 250th anniversary celebrations. But what Boston's hospitality industry experienced during those weeks was something bigger: more customers, more revenue, and more jobs for the people who work the late shift.

Boston City Councilor Brian Worrell has taken notice. He is now pushing to make the 3 a.m. last call permanent — not as a rubber stamp, but as a real policy conversation. "Now is a good time to understand the impacts of that pilot, get all the stakeholders to the table to discuss the pros and cons, and see if the city, the restaurant owners, the employees and the customers want to see this extended," Worrell told the Boston Herald.

That's exactly the right approach. Boston competes with cities like New York, Chicago, and Washington, D.C. — all places where nightlife runs later and restaurant workers earn more because of it. Keeping Boston's last call at 2 a.m. while tourists and conventioneers can stay out later one block into another city's jurisdiction doesn't make sense for anyone. A permanent 3 a.m. last call, paired with a responsible review of safety and staffing concerns, would put more money in the pockets of bartenders, servers, and kitchen workers — and more tax revenue into city coffers.

The pilot program has already done what pilots are supposed to do: prove the concept. Now it's time to make it stick. Sign this petition to tell the Boston City Council and the Massachusetts State Legislature to make the 3 a.m. last call permanent.