A BART train being unveiled to an excited crowd.
In celebration of BART’s 50th Anniversary this year, we’re looking back at the transit system’s five decades of service and innovation in a new series of stories.
BART’s Opening Day by the Numbers
Fifteen years of planning. Eight years of construction. More than $1 billion. On September 11, 1972, BART finally opened for service.
To watch a video of Taylor Thompson singing, click this link.
Taylor Thompson has the sort of voice that makes you stop in your tracks. Smooth and strong, his tenor range hits each note with precision and accuracy.
Thompson is a store clerk in BART’s Customer Services Center at Lake Merritt Station. He is also an established opera singer, having performed in productions across the Bay Area.
When Phoebe Cheng was little, she loved stories. She found that reading and storytelling could transport her to far away places, help her stand in someone else’s shoes, and shed light on why things are the way they are.
In school, Cheng discovered new passions – this time for math, physics, and computers. These three subjects, she found, could solve even the most inscrutable puzzles. And engineering combined all three of them.
Photo courtesy of Orinda Books.
At BART, we’re obviously big on transit, and books – just like our trains – have the power to transport you far from your everyday reality.
There are hundreds of independent bookstores in the Bay Area, whose wares range from used books to new books, children’s books to anarchist books, and everything in between. Many of these stores are easily accessible by BART. So, hop on the train and grab a new read from one of the below bookshops.
Bowls of ramen on the menu at Itani Ramen. Photo courtesy of Do The Bay.
Photo courtesy of Hernandez-Eli Architecture.
There’s something oddly majestic about seeing a BART car “in the wild,” or in a place you wouldn’t expect it to be, far from its straight and narrow tracks. Soon, this will be a regular occurrence for Bay Area residents as BART announces the eight finalists that have been selected to receive legacy BART cars in the coming months. The legacy cars will be replaced by BART’s Fleet of the Future.
BART mechanical engineer Samuel Hoffman poses atop a structure at Hayward Maintenance Complex.
BART engineers go the distance to innovate BART and prioritize rider safety
In celebration of National Engineers Week from February 21-26, 2022, BART Communications interviewed four engineering teams working on projects which are and will significantly improve BART. BART has hundreds of engineers working to improve the system and the rider experience mostly hidden from public view.
Let BART help you find Spin, LINK, and HOPR scooters around the Bay Area for fun and to expand how far you can go after your BART ride. Photo courtesy of Spin.
BART is making it easier than ever to take car-free trips by adding shared electric scooters (e-scooters) to BART’s multi-modal Trip Planner.
The mural “Vivir Sin Fronteras/Living Without Borders” outside Mi Tierra Foods on San Pablo Avenue in Berkeley. Photo courtesy of Guy Joaquin.
BART’s schedule will change on Monday, February 14, 2022, with significant improvements to Sunday service. With this schedule change, BART will operate midnight service every night of the week.
Highlights include: