Last call on the MBTA is about to get a little later.

Nine years after pulling the plug on a prior weekend late-night service program, the MBTA this month will begin running all subways and several popular bus routes about an hour longer into the night. It’s part of a new fall schedule that also boosts daytime trip frequency across most of the system.

Agency leaders — many of whom were not involved in the ill-fated pilot nearly a decade ago — said Tuesday they want to provide a “public service” for the commuters who need to take trips after about 1 a.m., including people enjoying a night out and those working overnight shifts, even if the demand is comparably smaller.

MBTA General Manager Phil Eng said ridership will not be the chief metric by which his team grades the performance of th

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