BART Ridership Surges Past 240,000 Daily as Board Eyes Service Gaps
Board of Directors • Bay Area Rapid Transit DistrictSeptember 24, 2026
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The BART Board of Directors met Sept. 24 with good news and hard questions in roughly equal measure. General Manager Bob Powers reported ridership 14% above the prior year — with 240,000 daily riders becoming the new baseline — but multiple directors used the session to press staff on communication failures during recent service disruptions that left passengers stranded without guidance.
- Ridership hits 14% above last year as daily counts top 240,000 and the Anime Festival at Warm Springs draws 8,000 attendees
- Directors grill staff on emergency communication breakdowns after a bus bridge left riders without signage, transfer info, or staff guidance
- Engineer alleges $8 billion shortfall in VTA's BART Silicon Valley Phase 2 tunnel project and a potential Brown Act violation by San Jose's mayor
- Board unanimously approves CCTV at new police headquarters and Union City pedestrian crossing with civil liberties group's support
- UCSF Bay Pass program set to quadruple from 8,300 to 36,000 participants under a new three-year agreement
Why it matters: BART's financial recovery — and the case for an upcoming ballot measure — hinges on sustained ridership growth. The numbers are now decisively moving in the agency's direction.
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