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As we leap into the new year, we’re taking the time to reflect on the stories that moved us this past year.  

From chance encounters to behind-the-scenes heroes, these stories reflect what makes BART so much more than a mode of transportation. 

Read about BART’s Top Accomplishments in 2025

All about the trains

In 2025, our trains were front and center. From welcoming the 1,000th Fleet of the Future car to celebrating the legacy cars that built the system, we spent the year telling their stories. 

• The Grand Meet makes sure late-night riders can get anywhere in the system before the end of service 
• Cleaner trains than ever: Meet the team that has five minutes to clean every BART train 
• The 1,000th Fleet of the Future car was just delivered. Here's what happens next. 
• Oakland Ballers step up to the plate to save legacy BART car the A's rejected 
• BART unveils Cab Cam video series, showcasing the entire system in 4K 
• A legacy BART car prepared for its next act: A vacation rental in the Sierra foothills 
• Meet the Tango team, the mainline technicians who fix trains while they’re moving 

Riders take BART on the town

BART gets people where they need to go, and in some cases, changes their lives for the better. This year, our riders showed us where they went and who they met along the way.  

• They chatted in the Transbay Tube in 1983. This fall, they celebrate their 41st wedding anniversary 
• Your best BART summer (by BART’s biggest fans) 
• The Bay Area camp that field trips on transit 
• Announcements recorded by local youth with autism playing in BART stations for Autism Acceptance Month

Rail tales

There’s more to running a railroad than trains and track. These stories zoomed in on the infrastructure, equipment, and teams that power our system.  

• “A great feat”: BART constructs new power substation in one of its busiest stations 
• How BART replaced a key transformer in the core of the system on a whirlwind schedule 
• How BART’s Earthquake Response Team is preparing for the next “Big One” 
• This 1,200-pound gear makes escalators run. Fixing it is no simple task. 
• Meet the artists who created original works for BART’s Downtown San Francisco escalator canopies 
• BART’s Inspector General is asking tough questions and saving taxpayers millions of dollars 

BART employees go above and beyond 

BART employees come from the communities the system serves. We celebrated their dedication (and fascinating life experiences) with storytelling.  

• Transit is punk: Kamala Parks went from cofounding 924 Gilman Street to urban planning at BART 
• BART managers take to the trains to hear directly from riders 
• BARTy: The official history of BART's beloved mascot 
• BART PD honors 20 individuals for their dedication to system safety 
• BART Leans into ideas from employees to save money and improve the rider experience 
• I was one of the first female train operators at BART. This is my story. 
• Holiday Toy Drive: BART employees donate more than 1,020 gifts and $3,275 in gift cards to organization supporting local youth and families 
• BART's Mark Nagales honored his grandmother’s memory with one final trip on a legacy train 
• BART Police welcomes new hires from a variety of backgrounds and experiences 

BART’s impact 

These stories zoomed out to show how BART supported the region and its vibrant economy.  

• Millbrae Station uplifts the city’s economy and community 
• How Pleasant Hill/Contra Costa Centre Station supports a city’s businesses, residents, and tourists 

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BART is going all in on bikes! Beginning January 1, 2024, bikes will be allowed on most of the escalators throughout the BART system to help make it easier for people to bring their bikes on board the train. 

This change was approved by the BART Board of Directors at the request of Director Rebecca Saltzman. The vote authorizes further changes to BART’s bike rules, including allowing bikes on all train cars except the first car (bikes were previously banned from the first three cars during commute times), and allowing bicyclists to secure bikes on the train using the bike lean bar and straps, instead of holding them.  

The bike rules were last changed 10 years ago, when BART ended the ban on bikes on BART during commute hours.  Over the last decade, longer and heavier bicycles, such as e-bikes and cargo bikes, have soared in popularity.

“Carrying bikes up and down stairwells can be difficult and not all bikes fit in our elevators,” said BART Director Rebecca Saltzman. “Updating our rules will make BART easier to use for cyclists and families bringing bikes on the train. Bikes play an important role in getting people out of their cars and on public transit and these updated rules encourage environmentally friendly multimodal travel options.”  

BART encourages riders to use their best judgment when utilizing system escalators and elevators because individual bikes vary in size and weight. 

BART is releasing a new video detailing safety tips for bringing bikes on escalators in the BART system.

See updated Bikes on BART rules here:

*Bikes will remain banned from BART’s ten narrow escalators located at the following three stations: 19th Street Oakland, Antioch and Oakland Airport Connector

Bike + Transit Trips

BART's Trip Planner offers multi-modal, end-to-end itineraries for bike + transit trips. It features customizable bike speed options including an option for e-bikes (select the settings/tool icon to customize your options). BART's Trip Planner includes results for more than 30 transit systems in the Bay Area such as bus service, ferries, cable cars, and regional train systems.

BART's Trip Planner is available on web, mobile, and the official BART app. The BART app also offers station information, including information on secured bike parking.

Elevator Dimension Guide

BART also offers this Elevator Dimension Guide to assist cyclists in navigating BART elevators. It outlines the dimensions of each elevator in the system including measurements of the door, width, length, and diagonal space across the floor. As always, use your best judgment when utilizing system elevators because individual bikes and elevators vary in size. 

2024 was a big year for BART as we continued to enhance the customer experience, improve safety and cleanliness, and invest in the future. 

These are 24 things we're proud of this year. 

1. Thousands joined us at MacArthur Station to mark the end of an era and say farewell to our 51-year-old legacy fleet at the Ride into History, a retirement ceremony and final ride event. Soon thereafter, three legacy cars were delivered to the Western Railway Museum for their forthcoming Rapid Transit History Center.  
2. The Fleet of the Future new train car project came in hundreds of millions of dollars under budget thanks to tight project management, and the final car of the original contract, car #775, was officially certified for passenger service. The project is now entering its second phase.

3. BART broke its post-pandemic ridership record on September 26 with 224,721 exits, the highest ridership day since March of 2020! 
4. Customer satisfaction is now at 83% -- up nearly 10 percentage points compared to the 1st quarter (July to September) of 2023. Customers say train cars are cleaner and the visible safety presence on trains has increased since BART implemented its Safe and Clean Plan.  
5. BART installed Next Generation Fare Gates at 12 stations, with more stations on the way. 
6. The percentage of riders who reported seeing a visible increase in safety presence was between 18% and 20% in 2024 (up from 10% in 2023) as BART Police maintained focus on deploying every available officer to trains and stations. The department also hired more officers than any year since 2019, reducing the January 2024 vacancy total from 29 to 19 as of December 2024. 
7. BART’s limited-income fare discount, Clipper START, increased from 20% to 50% at the beginning of the year, and ridership in the program has more than doubled since 2023. 
8. Bikes are now allowed on nearly all of the escalators in the BART system to make it easier for riders to bring them on trains.  
9. BART completed construction on entrance canopies at Embarcadero, Montgomery St, and Civic Center stations and installed new state-of-the-art street and platform escalators at Embarcadero, Powell, Montgomery St, and Civic Center stations. There are now 14 completed canopies and 16 new escalators at San Francisco stations.  
10. BART replaced three additional miles of worn rail this year, bringing the total amount of replaced rail to 55 miles. Funds for rail replacement come from voter-approved Measure RR, which is being used to rebuild the backbone of the BART system. 
11. BART awarded over half of our contract award dollars to minority- and women-owned businesses this year, and our Office of Civil Rights hosted its first Small Business Summit, which brought over 175 participants to BART Headquarters to connect with opportunities.   

12. BART and Bay Area transit agencies unveiled a new, uniform look for regional transit maps and signage, including local transit and facility maps, diagrams, and bus stop signs. The new designs will make regional transit easier to navigate by delivering information that is clear, predictable, and familiar across service areas and county lines.  
13. Bay Area transit agencies joined forces to sync schedules in a whole new way with a focus on improving transfers between systems and making schedule changes at the same time. There has been a 250% increase in the number of transit agencies changing their schedule concurrently twice each year, and six of seven major transit providers are syncing their schedule changes at least once a year. 
14. Clipper BayPass, the prepaid unlimited-ride transit pass, entered its second phase, meaning employers are now able to purchase the passes for their workers. Total BayPass trips across all operators was 1.6 million (from Jan. 1 – Nov. 30, 2024). BayPass has already begun generating revenue for our agency by increasing ridership! 

15. The Governor signed into law a bill sponsored by BART to modernize its financial operations by merging all functions under a newly created Chief Financial Officer (CFO) position. BART’s first CFO began in December 2024 and has the authority to streamline BART’s financial forecasting, budgeting, and reporting of financial data. The new structure will create greater accountability to realize long-term cost savings and to better navigate the significant funding challenges ahead.  
16. BART leadership implemented recommendations made by the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) to improve operational efficiencies and enhance contract oversight, ensuring taxpayer money is used appropriately. The OIG also made progress in 2024 on audits aimed at identifying opportunities for BART to control or avoid costs. 
17. Several Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) projects in partnership with BART received major grants, including: 
    1. $25 million for North Berkeley TOD mobility enhancements from the Cycle 7 Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program. 
    2. $35 million for North Berkeley TOD on BART property from the Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities (AHSC) program by the California Strategic Council.  
    3. $25 million for El Cerrito Plaza TOD on BART property from AHSC. 
    4. $25 million for an affordable housing near Walnut Creek Station from AHSC.  
18. BART celebrated the groundbreaking of 97 units of affordable TOD housing for seniors on the site of Lake Merritt Station’s old parking lot.  
19. BART secured a $14 million grant from the US Department of Transportation for new electric vehicle charging stations at all BART-managed parking facilities. The charging stations will be available for BART riders as well as community members who live nearby. 
20. BART’s decadeslong Earthquake Safety Program was officially completed following the completion of the internal retrofit of the Transbay Tube – just in time for the iconic bay crossing’s 50th birthday! 
21. BART released the Role in the Region Report, which aims to inform a regional conversation about the future of BART by describing its contributions to the Bay Area. The report was released in tandem with BART Connects, a rider storytelling series that illustrates the different ways BART affects real people’s lives.

22. In 2024, BART hosted a bunch of iconic events, including: 
    1. Project Doneway fashion show, featuring 35 garments constructed out of retired BART paper tickets by fashion students at Oakland School for the Arts, Academy of Art, San Francisco State University, and City College of San Francisco. 
    2. BARTmobile 20th Birthday Party that included face painting, music, carnival games, free cupcakes, and free rides in the BARTmobile (a rare opportunity for the public)! 
    3. BART Night at the Oakland Ballers, a special celebration of community, baseball, and the transit system that takes you to the games! BART partnered with the Ballers on their inaugural season, and the team’s jerseys currently feature our logo. 
    4. Sound Tracks free live music series was held at three different stations and featured three local bands/musicians. 
    5. Ride Into History, a retirement party for BART's legacy train cars that saw thousands celebrate at MacArthur Station and take a final ride on the historic trains.  
    6. BART x Yifang boba cuplseeves collab, which culminated in a popup event at Colma Yifang. 
23. Plus, we hosted some awesome engagement programs: 
    1. BART Lines Teen Poetry Contest, which resulted in 31 winning poems about BART and the Bay Area that you can read in our story dispensers at Balboa Park, Downtown Berkeley, Fruitvale, and Pleasant Hill stations.  
    2. The Autism Transit Project, a national program that invites youth on the spectrum to record station announcements for Autism Acceptance Month. Twenty local young people recorded announcements that played at 35 BART stations. 
    3. Bach in the Subways, a worldwide celebration of Johann Sebastian Bach. More than ten local musicians played Bach at various BART stations. 
24. Last but not least, we launched a Fun Stuff webpage that compiles all the fun stuff we’re doing at BART in one place, including upcoming events and a special section for Rider Guides, which describe how to take transit to local venues in a visual, easy-to-read format.

Crime on BART plummeted in 2025, a testament to the hard work of the BART Police Department and the effectiveness of BART's investment in initiatives and infrastructure that both increase safety and enhance the customer experience.  

Overall crime on BART dropped 41% in 2025 compared to the previous year, with violent crime down 31% and property crime down 43%, according to the December 2025 Chief’s Monthly Report. Additional highlights include auto thefts decreasing by half year over year and robberies decreasing by 60%.  

This substantial decrease in crimes in the system comes as ridership continues to grow steadily, with BART serving nearly 5 million more trips in 2025 than 2024, a year that also saw ridership growth in addition to a drop in crime.  

“Safety is about more than enforcement. It’s about presence, partnership, and creating an environment where all riders feel comfortable using BART,” said BART Police Chief Kevin Franklin. “BART PD is committed to deterring criminal activity, responding quickly when help is needed, and ensuring riders feel safe throughout their journeys. These numbers demonstrate the impact of officers who are engaged and focused on building trust with the communities BART serves.” 

“Riders are witnessing firsthand the improvements to safety, cleanliness, and customer experience that define the New BART,” said BART General Manager Bob Powers. “We’ve combined infrastructure upgrades, such as improved fare gates and station lighting, with additional safety presence and customer-centered service to make BART a comfortable experience for everyone who rides. I want to thank BART PD for their tireless commitment to serving the public.”  

BART PD boosted the visible safety presence in the system by doubling officer presence systemwide and ensuring police are riding trains more. This approach is strengthened by BART’s ongoing use of unarmed Crisis Intervention Specialists, Transit Ambassadors, Fare Inspectors, and Community Service Officers.  

Safety efforts were also bolstered by the installation of 715 new fare gates at all 50 stations, a project completed in August 2025, four months ahead of schedule. The taller, stronger fare gates are improving the station environment and deterring fare evasion and unwanted behavior. The number of riders who say they’ve witnessed someone not paying has dropped 59% in the last year.  

BART also maintains a network of 4,000+ surveillance cameras, minimizing response time and holding suspects accountable, and continues to install LED lighting on platforms and in parking facilities to eliminate dark corners. Efforts such as these not only improve safety, but the entirety of the BART experience by making the system more welcoming and comfortable.  

In 2025, BART PD continued its robust officer recruitment campaign with a $15,000 hiring bonus and a robust outreach strategy, including a dedicated JoinBARTPD.com recruitment site and the recent launch of a BART PD Instagram to reach potential recruits where they’re at.