CONTRA COSTA COUNTY, CALIFORNIA – BART’s new systemwide schedule took effect Monday, bringing shorter and more convenient transfers for riders traveling from the 925 toward San Jose, Berkeley and Richmond.
Almost every BART departure time has changed by at least a few minutes under the new schedule. The most significant changes for local riders involve the Blue Line serving Dublin and Pleasanton and the Yellow Line running through Antioch, Concord, Walnut Creek, Lafayette and Orinda.
For Tri-Valley riders traveling toward Silicon Valley, BART has introduced a coordinated cross-platform transfer at Bay Fair Station.
Blue Line trains from Dublin and Pleasanton will now arrive alongside Orange Line trains headed toward Berryessa/North San Jose. The same coordinated connection will be available in the opposite direction.
Previously, riders making that transfer could face a scheduled wait of about 19 minutes. Under the new schedule, the trains are supposed to pull into Bay Fair together, allowing passengers to walk directly across the platform.
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BART said the change is intended to improve trips between San Jose and both the Tri-Valley and the Altamont Pass region, where commuters may connect to BART through services such as the Altamont Corridor Express.
Another major improvement affects Yellow Line riders traveling toward Berkeley, El Cerrito or Richmond.
Those passengers generally change trains at MacArthur Station. Under the previous schedule, the connection could require a wait of approximately 21 minutes. The new timetable gives riders a four-minute transfer from Platform 4 to Platform 1, cutting 17 minutes from the scheduled wait.
Unlike the new Bay Fair connection, the MacArthur transfer is not directly across the platform. Passengers will still need to use the stairs, escalator or elevator to move between platforms. BART officials have said the four-minute connection was designed to provide enough time to make the change without running.
The improvement applies to riders arriving from Antioch and other Yellow Line stations in Contra Costa County, including Pittsburg, Concord, Pleasant Hill, Walnut Creek and Lamorinda.
Connections between the conventional Yellow Line trains and BART’s smaller diesel-powered Antioch trains are also being retimed at the transfer platform east of Pittsburg/Bay Point Station.
Under the previous schedule, Yellow Line trains traveling toward Antioch were sometimes delayed while waiting for an Orange Line connection at 19th Street/Oakland. Those delays could ripple east and cause riders to miss the timed transfer toward Pittsburg Center and Antioch.
The Orange Line will now arrive earlier in Oakland, which BART expects will keep Yellow Line trains closer to schedule and make the Pittsburg transfer more reliable in both directions.
The schedule overhaul began with an operational change nearly 30 miles away at Daly City Station.
Daly City sits next to a BART storage yard, and trains going out of service previously had to cross tracks used by trains continuing through the station. BART described the station as a systemwide congestion point capable of creating delays that spread into the East Bay.
Under the new configuration, Daly City operates as a center-platform station. Blue and Green Line trains ending their runs there will unload passengers on Platform 3 before heading to the yard, while Red and Yellow Line trains continuing through the station will have a clearer route.
That change allowed BART to rearrange train times across the system without adding service or increasing operating costs.
The revised schedule also creates more consistent spacing between Blue and Green Line trains serving San Francisco and the East Bay. Instead of arriving three minutes apart and then leaving a 17-minute gap, the trains will generally be spaced eight and 12 minutes apart. BART expects the change to reduce both platform waits and crowding for Dublin- and Berryessa-bound passengers.
Several longer peak-period trains introduced in July will remain in service. That includes 10-car trains on some of the busiest morning and afternoon Yellow Line trips.
Because individual departure times have shifted, riders should check BART’s Trip Planner using a travel date of August 10 or later rather than relying on their previous routine. Even passengers who do not make one of the newly coordinated transfers may find that their regular train now arrives several minutes earlier or later.
Nice! Need to do even more. Expand routes to get cars off the road. We are so far behind many other countries when it comes to public transportation.