Top 21 BART accomplishments in 2021

2021 was the first full year we spent living in the midst of the pandemic. Despite the challenges, we accomplished many things to help serve the Bay Area.

Improvements to the Rider Experience:

• We returned to near pre-pandemic levels of service and hours Monday through Saturday in August, with a commitment to improve Sunday service in February 2022.
• We installed MERV-14 air filters on all trains to filter out virus particles like coronavirus.
• Train interior and station interior cleanliness metrics improved year over year based on rider surveys.
• We rolled out pay by phone options with Clipper now available in Apple Pay and Google Pay.
• We made it easier to reserve monthly, single day and airport/long term-reserved parking.
• We produced new BART & Caltrain transfer timetables to increase transparency about connection times at Millbrae.

Improvements to Personal Safety:

• We launched our groundbreaking Progressive Policing Bureau that includes deploying Ambassadors and Crisis Intervention Specialists.  
• Our efforts to increase safety staff visibility is paying off with a 37% drop in violent crime in 2021 and 21% drop in crime overall- this comes as ridership has been increasing.
• We launched the Not One More Girl campaign and changed our code of conduct policy to send a clear message that sexual harassment and gender-based violence has no place on BART. 

Investments in Infrastructure:

• We replaced 7.5 miles of track, 2 major interlockings, and 66 miles of power cables.

Improvements at Stations:

• At Antioch station we added full-time station agents during all service hours, and expanded parking while improving bike and pedestrian access.
• We finished our modernization of El Cerrito del Norte Station.
• We unveiled three new escalators in downtown San Francisco.
• 12 parking garages got brighter LED lights to improve safety and sustainability.
• We brought art and culture into our stations with free short story kiosks and an outdoor music series.

Leadership in the Region:

• We offered our stations and parking lots for COVID-19 vaccinations and testing sites, and we made it easy for residents to take transit to get vaccinated.
• We launched our Link21 Program to transform Northern California’s rail network with an eye on equity and how best to serve the mega-region.
• Our Transit-Oriented Development program advanced with new homes at Pleasant Hill and MacArthur leasing up. Construction at Millbrae and Walnut Creek stayed on track for 2022 completion.  Projects at Lake Merritt and West Dublin were entitled. 
• Our electric power supply was certified as 100% greenhouse gas free.
• We contracted $73.2 million dollars to a diverse group of small, minority, and women owned businesses.
• We implemented a COVID vaccine mandate for all employees to help keep our workforce and riders healthy.