Engineers Week 2026: BART's engineers are transforming the future of transit
Each year, Engineers Week provides an opportunity to celebrate the problem-solvers who shape the world around us. This includes the hundreds of BART engineers bringing to life ambitious projects that are redefining how the Bay Area moves. From advanced train control systems to strengthened electrical infrastructure, BART’s engineers are enacting the theme of this year’s Engineers Week – Transform Your Future – every single day.
BART's engineering workforce spans dozens of specialties, from civil and structural to traction power and construction management, fostering a collaborative environment where diverse expertise comes together to tackle large-scale challenges. Their work ensures the system remains safe, resilient, and ready for what's to come.
“Engineers are at the heart of everything we do at BART,” said General Manager Bob Powers, a Professional Engineer himself. “Their work doesn’t just improve BART operations – it strengthens communities and ensures that everyone who lives here has access to enriching opportunities and experiences.”
“BART’s engineers are truly an elite group of puzzle solvers driven by a passion for making a difference for the Bay Area” said Sylvia Lamb, Assistant General Manager for Infrastructure Delivery. “They leverage industry expertise to deliver safe reliable service for today’s passengers while maintaining an innovative vision for transforming tomorrow’s.”
What are BART engineers working on? Keep reading to hear about some of the exciting projects happening around the system.
Next Generation Fare Gates
BART recently completed installation of its Next Generation Fare Gates at all stations, modernizing fare control equipment for the first time in decades.
The new gates feature advanced sensors, improved accessibility for people using wheelchairs, bikes, and strollers, and a more secure, durable design that helps deter fare evasion while improving passenger flow. The systemwide rollout was completed ahead of schedule and is already enhancing reliability and the overall rider experience. BART engineers are now using the fare gate’s advanced sensors to optimize their performance.
Communications-Based Train Control
One of the most ambitious efforts underway is Communications-Based Train Control (CBTC), which will replace BART’s legacy fixed-block signal system with a modern, communications-based platform. The project represents a generational upgrade to rail operations, fundamentally changing how the agency manages train movement, capacity, and reliability for decades to come. By allowing trains to operate more precisely and closer together, CBTC will increase throughput through the busiest parts of the system, including the transbay corridor, helping deliver more frequent and dependable service.
Implementing the technology requires installing new trackside communications equipment, onboard systems, and advanced control software while maintaining daily passenger service. It is widely considered one of the most ambitious signaling modernizations in U.S. transit and showcases the scale and technical complexity of BART’s engineering work.
Traction Power Cable Replacement
Behind every BART trip is a vast electrical network that supplies power to the trains. BART’s traction power cable replacement program is renewing aging 34.5kV sub-transmission cables that distribute electricity from substations to traction power facilities across the system.
Replacing these decades-old cables improves reliability, increases capacity, and reduces the risk of service disruptions, ensuring trains have the consistent power needed to provide continuous and frequent service. The new cables will also be used for traction power substation control and to monitor other vital BART assets.
Investing in the Next Generation of Engineers
The 2025 BART Engineering Interns are pictured at BART HQ. From left to right: Israel Banez, Alexa Banuelos, Thi Phan, Kevin Nguyen, Miguel Coronado, Kai Gottschalk, Devine Pritchard, Aidan Tamayo, Gianna Pietro, Yonas Isaak Mussie, Alexandro Silva.
Engineers Week is also about inspiring future problem-solvers. BART’s Engineering Internship Program provides paid, hands-on opportunities for college students and recent graduates to work directly with staff engineers on active capital, maintenance, and a wide range of other engineering projects and initiatives. Interns gain experience in areas such as design support, field inspections, construction coordination, data analysis, and systems testing, and the opportunity to apply core engineering principles and contribute to real-world improvements across stations, track, power, and train control. Five engineering interns who participated in the 2025 program were later hired full-time as Junior Engineers.
Students interested in learning more can visit bart.gov/internships. The application period will open this spring.