BART will increase police patrols on trains and in stations, increase the frequency of “deep cleaning” of train cars and add more “scrub crew” cleaning at stations this spring. (BART Photograph)

Transit Briefs: BART, LIRR, MBTA

San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) is boosting police presence and cleaning in response to rider concerns. Also, New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) and federal, state and local officials celebrate the start of full-scale Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) service to Grand Central Madison; and Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) launches a safety dashboard for riders and pushes back implementation of its new automated fare collection system.

Forbes has recognized Amtrak as one of 500 “Best Large Employers” in America for 2023. (Photograph Courtesy of Amtrak)

Transit Briefs: Amtrak, BART, Brightline, Metra, NCTD, TransLink

Amtrak earns a spot on the Forbes 2023 list of America’s Best Large Employers. Also, San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District (BART) launches a domestic violence prevention campaign; Brightline targets the opening of its Orlando, Fla., passenger rail extension, and plans three wildlife overcrossings for its Los Vegas-to-Southern California high-speed rail project; Metra’s Board signs off on the Chicago commuter railroad’s 2023-27 strategic plan; North County Transit District (NCTD) launches pilot fare products to meet the needs of San Diego County’s hybrid workforce; and members of the metro Vancouver community can scrap their cars for 16 months of free transit.

CalSTA awarded Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) $375 million for the six-mile, four-station BART Silicon Valley Phase II Extension Project that will bring BART service to downtown San Jose and Santa Clara. Project completion is scheduled for 2033.

CalSTA Awards $2.5B for Rail Transit Projects

San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District (BART) and Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board (Caltrain) are among the 14 California agencies that will share $2.515 billion in TIRCP (Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program) grants from CalSTA (California State Transportation Agency) for rail-related projects.

In Massachusetts, the Joint Committee on Transportation on Jan. 3 released a report recommending that MBTA be charged with subway and bus operations only, not Commuter Rail, ferry and construction services, according to the Boston Herald.

Transit Briefs: MBTA, Metro-North, BART

A new Massachusetts Legislature report recommends changing Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority’s (MBTA) structure, leaving it in charge of subway and bus operations only. Also, MTA Metro-North Railroad marks its 40th anniversary; and San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District (BART) teams with Rapido Trains, Inc., to produce 1:87 (HO) scale models of the BART legacy cars.

An image of a 1/12 scale model of a BART railcar prototype from the 1960s. (Sundberg-Ferar Image, Courtesy of BART)

50 Years of BART: Prototypes That Started It All

The iconic original BART (San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District) car could have looked very different.

VIA Rail is adding “buffer cars at the front and back end of all trains with [older] stainless steel equipment to reduce the consequences in the unlikely event of a train-to-train collision,” Canada’s government-owned passenger railroad told The Globe and Mail. This safety measure will remain until older cars can be reinforced and new Siemens trainsets (pictured) enter service. (Photograph Courtesy of VIA Rail Canada)

Transit Briefs: TTC, VIA Rail, WMATA, BART/MTC

The Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) selects AECOM as owner’s engineer for the Bloor-Yonge Station Capacity Improvements project. Also, VIA Rail Canada is adding “buffer” cars to some trains to improve safety; Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA/Metro) reports that next month the Silver Line extension will be operationally ready to open, but it’s unclear if more 7000-series railcars will be approved for release to support it; and San Francisco Bay Rapid Transit District (BART) and the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) report a plastic Clipper® fare-card shortage.

This conceptual drawing from around 1960 shows the combined BART and Muni Metro subway underneath Market Street at Powell. (Photograph and Caption Courtesy of SFMTA)
Commentary

Celebrating BART at 50: A Critical Link for San Francisco

In September, our sister agency San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District, celebrated its 50th anniversary. BART service changed transportation in the Bay Area forever, connecting communities in a way that hadn’t been done before. For San Francisco, the construction of BART not only provided new travel options within the city and to the East Bay, but also built the Muni Metro system.

Caltrain representatives were joined by federal, state, regional and local officials and community members on Sept. 24 to celebrate the first public viewing of the Northern California transit agency’s Stadler-built KISS EMUs. (Photograph Courtesy of Caltrain)

Transit Briefs: BART, Caltrain, MBTA, NJ Transit, Valley Link, WMATA

The San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District (BART) announces its inaugural short story contest finalists. Also, Caltrain celebrates the first public viewing of its Stadler US-built KISS EMUs (electric multiple unit); Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) is launching its commuter rail fare gate program; New Jersey Transit is advancing its New Brunswick Station improvement project; California’s Valley Link is seeking funding for design and construction of the proposed 42-mile, seven-station passenger rail project between the Dublin/Pleasanton BART station and the North Lathrop Altamont Corridor Express (ACE) station, which could be powered by hydrogen; and the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) is in the final stages of preparation for the Silver Line extension opening.

The memorial at the San Bruno BART Station plaza based on a Dorothea Lange photograph of Mochida sisters departing for incarceration at Tanforan. (Photograph and Caption Courtesy of BART)

BART: Power of Art in Times of Tragedy

“It’s incredibly important to keep this history alive because, even though it happened 80 years ago, with Executive Order 9066, it’s still a history not everyone knows. It hasn’t been covered extensively in the history books. This exhibition is a place for remembrance and acknowledgement, education and healing.” —Na Omi Judy Shintani, Curator, “Tanforan Incarceration 1942; Resilience Behind Barbed Wire”

The independent Measure RR Bond Oversight Committee’s new annual report says through March 2022, $1.26 billion in Measure RR funds were invested in a total of 150 BART projects. Measure RR is now in its fifth year of what is expected to be a 20-year lifespan of work. (Photograph Courtesy of BART)

Report: More Active BART Projects Than Ever

There are now more rebuilding projects happening across the San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District (BART) than at any point in the District’s 50-year-history despite the continuing impacts of the global pandemic.

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