We're now on the fifteenth week of providing weekly train car loading charts on bart.gov/crowding & social media. The charts provide a snapshot of what riders can expect on-board trains this week.
Yellow and Blue lines for 10/19/20-10/23/20
Using recent ridership data, the charts are posted on bart.gov/crowding every week.
Look up your line, station and then departure time. The # in the box is the expected average # of riders on each car at departure of station.
Red and Green lines, 10/19/20-10/23/20
Please be aware the data in these charts:
-Reflects average # of riders on each car as the train departs each station
-Assumes passengers are evenly spread through all cars on a train
-Is not real-time information
Orange Line, 10/19/20-10/23/20
As daily ridership inches up, BART continues the rebuilding work in its core system. Take a look at this time-lapse video from our recent track switch replacement project near Hayward Station:
BART cars filter & replace inside air about every 70 seconds. This was the case before COVID-19 and is still now. Air is filtered more effectively than in an office or grocery store.
We've also begun new pilot tests for better filtration.
Note: It is going to be a long Twitter thread encompassing many technical points.
Comprehensive information on BART train car air flow and our pilot tests can be read at bart.gov/news/articles/…
BART staff recently reviewed the Senate Republicans' HEALS Act proposal and it does not include funding for public transit agencies.
Transit systems across the United States continue to run service for essential workers, transit dependent riders, and those avoiding car traffic.
Earlier in July, we joined a national coalition of transit leaders requesting $32-36 billion in add'l funding be included in next COVID-19 relief bill for public transportation industry to help cover COVID-related costs and revenue losses through 2021.
Emergency funding will help prevent devastating permanent cuts nationwide and disproportionate economic and social impacts for many underserved communities.
For BART, as example, ridership during SIP has been largely those lacking a car, people of color and making >$50K/year.
THREAD: The Bay Area is reopening. BART ridership is very slowly rising.
To welcome riders back and regain confidence in public transit, BART is taking the following 15 steps while continuing to explore new measures and technologies that could assist in a safe recovery.
1⃣ Disinfecting trains and stations is BART's highest priority. BART continues to use hospital-grade disinfectant in stations and on-board trains. Train poles are wiped down with disinfectant at end-of-line. Crews use electrostatic foggers in cars which spray disinfecting mist.
2⃣ BART commits to running long trains all day so social distancing is achievable inside cars. Staff determined ~30 people per car allows 6-ft social distancing.
If ridership data show >30 riders per car consistently during peak hours, BART will add trains for 15-min headways.
BART staff finalized its new system map in preparation for the future Milpitas and Berryessa station opening and will present it to the Board of Directors next week.
Left: current map
Right: finalized new map once Milpitas & Berryessa opens
With BART's Silicon Valley extension into San Jose, BART needed to rescale the system map to add more South Bay details.
Multiple improvements were made to the design to make it easier to read and to better highlight regional transit connectivity points.
The new system map underwent some cleaning to help ease of reading and comprehension.
The Yellow Line in Contra Costa County is smoothed out, and more spacing has been given between the Oakland stations to make the map easier to read and follow.
Ridership for Wed, March 18, was 48,085, a 88% decline compared to avg Wed in Feb 2020.
Due to ridership drop and Shelter in Place order, BART is taking swift action to reduce operating costs and will make the following service changes starting Mon, March 23 until further notice
Starting Mon, March 23, BART will provide service Mon-Fri from 5am-9pm (currently service runs until midnight). Current weekday train frequency will remain.
Starting Sat, March 28, Sat and Sun service will be from 8am-9pm. Current weekend train frequency will remain.
BART has and continues to exhaustively examine ridership and train car loads.
Ridership after 9pm has dropped substantially; it now represents only 3% of ridership.
Starting next week, riders will need to be in system by 8:45 pm to have a guaranteed ride to their destination.