Bay Area Rapid Transit
Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) is a rapid transit system serving the San Francisco Bay Area in California. BART serves 50 stations along six routes and 131 miles (211 kilometers) of track, including a 9-mile (14 km) spur line running to Antioch, which uses diesel multiple unit vehicles, and a 3-mile (4.8 km) automated guideway transit line serving Oakland International Airport. With an average of 164,500 weekday passengers as of the third quarter of 2023 and 41,286,400 annual passengers in 2022, BART is the seventh-busiest heavy rail rapid transit system in the United States.
| Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) | |
|---|---|
Train in southern San Francisco in July 2023 | |
| Overview | |
| Locale | San Francisco Bay Area (Alameda, Contra Costa, San Francisco, San Mateo, and Santa Clara counties) |
| Transit type |
|
| Number of lines |
|
| Number of stations | 50 (7 planned/proposed) |
| Daily ridership | 164,500 (weekdays, Q3 2023) |
| Annual ridership | 41,286,400 (2022) |
| Chief executive | Robert Powers |
| Headquarters | 2150 Webster Street Oakland, California |
| Website | bart |
| Operation | |
| Began operation | September 11, 1972 |
| Operator(s) | San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District |
| Character | Fully grade separated with at-grade, elevated and underground sections |
| Number of vehicles | 789 total, with 618 legacy cars and 171 new cars in service; with 8 DMU vehicle sets (eBART); and 4 AGT vehicle sets |
| Train length |
|
| Headway | 20 mins (by line) |
| Technical | |
| System length | 131.4 mi (211.5 km) |
| Track gauge |
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| Minimum radius of curvature | 120 m (394 ft) |
| Electrification | Third rail, 1 kV DC |
| Average speed | 35 mph (56 km/h) |
| Top speed |
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BART is operated by the San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District which formed in 1957. The initial system opened in stages from 1972 to 1974. The system has been extended several times, most recently in 2020, when Milpitas and Berryessa/North San José stations opened as part of the under construction Silicon Valley BART extension in partnership with the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA).