View and download our BART Funding factsheet [pdf]
Remote work has changed how Bay Area residents live, work, and travel. It has hit BART and all other public transit systems hard, decimating transit ridership and, along with it, the transit fare revenue we rely on to keep trains running.
While millions of riders have returned to BART, they are riding less frequently, resulting in fewer trips. The Bay Area has the highest work-from-home rates in the nation and the slowest downtown recoveries and our ridership mirrors office occupancy. This has created an ongoing structural financial deficit of $350M to $400M, impacting BART’s long-term ability to deliver the high-quality transit service the Bay Area relies on.
In addition to receiving emergency funding during the pandemic, BART has acted to right-size service and its workforce, control labor costs, trim non-labor spending, and deliver major projects under budget. These measures have saved hundreds of millions of dollars while preserving essential service for the region.
BART’s funding deficit
BART is now running service using emergency funds that will run out in 2026. BART balanced the FY26 budget with $35M in ongoing cuts and cost controls. In the FY27 budget, BART will institute cost savings and deferrals of $108M to maintain current service levels and produce a balanced budget. Ongoing structural deficits ranging from $375M to over $400M per year begin in FY27.This chart below shows BART's funding sources ($M). It also shows how current revenues will not support current service levels.
BART is cutting costs*
Labor Savings
- Eliminated 672 vacant positions in FY20
- A strategic hiring freeze on 56 positions (FY25 and FY26), saving $7.8M annually and impacting all levels, including management
- Renegotiated with unions to reduce near-term retiree healthcare costs
- Executive management salary freeze in FY21
- Negotiated a 0% wage increase in FY22
Efficiencies
- Run shorter trains to save $8M per year in energy costs
- 5% reduction in non-labor budgets across all departments in FY26
- Reduced peak-period service
- Locked in low electricity costs though long-term contracts
- Saved $400M in new rail car acquisition with tight project controls, using in-house engineers, and speeding up delivery
Increase Revenue
- Installed new fare gates to reduce fare evasion, generating $10M in new revenue per year
- Inflation-based fare increases accounting for $35M per year and demand-based parking price increases
- Offer new fare products, such as Clipper BayPass, generating $7M per year
* List not inclusive of all savings
Pursuing new funding and loans
In 2025 the California Legislature enacted Senate Bill 63, supported by BART, authorizing a new transportation funding measure for placement on the November 2026 ballot. If approved by voters, the measure would provide BART operations an estimated $310M annually beginning in FY28. BART is also pursuing federal and state loan money to cover the cost of running service until the proceeds from a successful measure are available for use.
Embracing independent oversight
BART is the only transit system in the Bay Area with an Office of the Inspector General to provide independent oversight of BART’s use of revenue.
A 2025 audit by the Federal Transit Administration found BART is meeting standards in nearly two dozen categories, including financial management.
BART is participating in the Financial Efficiency Review required in SB 63.
BART’s funding model before the pandemic
Before the pandemic, BART depended on fares to run service more than almost any other transit agency in the world with money from passenger fares and parking fees covering nearly 70% of the cost to run BART service. Now, because of remote work, only 30% of operating costs are covered by fares (as of FY25).
BART’s operating ratio*
FY26 forecast.............................................32%
FY25..........................................................30%
FY24..........................................................29%
FY23..........................................................26%
FY22..........................................................21%
FY21..........................................................12%
Pre-COVID.................................................71%
*Percentage of costs paid by passenger fares, parking revenue, advertising, and other sources
Cutting service still leaves a deficit
Rail has high fixed costs and low marginal costs. BART would have to cut service 65% to 85% to save 20% to 40%. Cutting service and scaling back on cleanliness and safety efforts could result in lower ridership, further reducing revenue. BART’s FY27 budget balancing plan is not sustainable for the long term. Without new funding, BART may not be able to sustain even reduced service for more than one or two years.
Planning for two financial scenarios
The BART Board of Directors will plan for both a “funding measure succeeds” and a “funding measure fails” scenario. If the measure succeeds, once funds become available, BART will be able to run normal service with efficiencies implemented. To develop the “funding measure fails” plan, the board will review potential cuts in February 2026 and adopt an alternative service framework with staff reductions.
At the annual BART Board Workshop on Thursday, February 12, BART staff will present Directors with detailed plans for an alternative service framework if a November 2026 ballot measure fails and no other operating revenue source is identified. You can read the full presentation here.
Options under consideration*:
- 30-minute train frequency
- 9pm closure
- 10-15 stations closed
- Line shutdowns resulting in a three-line network
- 30%–50% fare and parking increase
- 1,200 layoffs
*Once the board adopts a “funding measure fails” framework, the details will be shared with the public and stakeholders.
Cost-efficient heavy rail system
BART is one of the most cost-efficient heavy rail systems in the United States. With an operating cost of $375 per vehicle revenue hour (FY24), BART ranks 7th out of 16 U.S. heavy rail operators. BART’s costs are lower than its two closest structural peers: Washington D.C.’s Metrorail ($400 per hour) and Atlanta’s MARTA ($392 per hour). Both systems were built in the 1970s and share BART’s hybrid urban/commuter operating model. The few U.S. operators with significantly lower costs are primarily legacy systems built in the early 20th century (such as NYC and Chicago), which operate dense city subways rather than longer-haul regional rail.
Despite operating in a high-cost region, BART’s operating expenses have grown at a rate lower than inflation since 2019, even while opening the extension to Berryessa/North San José.
Ridership trends
BART's ridership matches Bay Area return-to-office occupancy rates. Work-related trips make up a smaller share of BART trips and riders are using the system more for personal needs. Evening, weekend, and airport service have retained ridership more strongly than commuting.
| Average Ridership | FY25 | FY24 | FY23 | FY22 | Pre-pandemic |
| Weekday | 171,981 | 162,374 | 149,574 | 111,311 | 408,723 |
| Saturday | 99,766 | 90,795 | 84,844 | 68,253 | 159,133 |
| Sunday | 74,566 | 68,080 | 62,573 | 48,373 | 111,972 |
Total Fiscal Year annual ridership
FY25 52.7M
FY24 49.6M
FY23 45.9M
FY22 34.5M
FY19 118M (before the pandemic)
Presentations given to the BART Board of Directors about the funding deficit
February 12, 2026: Board of Directors Workshop
November 13, 2025: Board of Directors Meeting: FY27 Budget Strategy
May 6, 2025: Board of Directors Meeting: FY27 Operating Budget Scenarios
February 27, 2025: Board Workshop Meeting: Facing the Fiscal Cliff
October 24, 2024: Board of Directors Meeting: Update of Regional Transportation Revenue Measure
October 24, 2024: Board of Directors Meeting: Bay Area Transit Measure Survey Analysis
September 12, 2024: Board of Directors Meeting: Update on Regional Transportation Revenue Measure
June 13, 2024: Board of Directors Meeting: FY25 & FY26 Budget Adoption
May 7, 2024: Board of Directors Meeting: FY 25 & 26 Budget Sources, Uses and Rail Service Plan
October 26, 2023: Board Budget Workshop: Financial Context
October 26, 2023: Board Budget Workshop: Strategies to Reduce the Deficit
Feb. 23, 2023: Board Workshop: BART's Financial Outlook and Economic Context
Feb. 23, 2023: Board Workshop: Update on Advocacy Strategy
Jan. 26, 2023: Fiscal Action Plan and Advocacy Strategy
June 28, 2023: Statement from BART GM on state budget agreement
Advocacy Letters
May 28, 025 Letter to Governor Newsom regarding May Revision and Cap-and-Invest Plan
May 2023 Transit Operating Coalition letter to Ca. Legislative leaders
March 2023 Transit Operating Coalition letter to Ca. Legislative Budget Subcommittee Chairs
January 2023 Transit Operating Coalition letter to the Ca. Legislative Budget Committee Chairs
November 2022 Transit Agencies Joint Letter to the Pete Buttigieg about Transit Recovery Assistance
