46 replies to this topic

[CNJRoss]

4/9/20

 

 

 

 

BART uses COVID-19 pandemic to focus on construction

 

RT&S Editor-in-Chief Bill Wilson talks with BART's Alicia Trost on how the agency is moving workers over to construction during the pandemic.

 

LISTEN NOW

 

 

 

 

 

[CNJRoss]

Progressive Railroading 4/16/20

 

BART amps up power cable replacement work

 

 

Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) crews earlier this week began replacing rail power cables on weekdays in downtown San Francisco, a project made possible by reduced ridership due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

 

Previously, power cable replacement work was performed late at night and on Sundays. With reduced ridership on the system, BART crews are now able to start replacements earlier.

 

Continue here.

[CNJRoss]

 

 

April 20, 2020

 

 

Essential workers on BART: Meet the SF SPCA's Daniel Malin and some very good dogs and cats in miniature landmarks like the "Catstro" Theatre

 

 

 

 

 

 

Daniel Malin pictured on his commute from Oakland to San Francisco on BART 

In the city of San Francisco, named for the patron saint of animals, the SF SPCA is providing essential services to animals for sick, urgent and emergency care visits during the coronavirus pandemic, and still helping animals find forever homes (by individual appointment).

To do so, the SF SPCA needs its workers, and those workers need a safe and reliable way to get to work. That's where BART comes in.
 

Daniel Malin takes BART from Oakland to his job at the SF SPCA's Mission Campus. He works in customer service so he might help intake an injured dog for emergency surgery, arrange for a foster pickup, or schedule a telemedicine appointment. (The SF SPCA is currently closed other than for emergencies or by appointment for adoptions or fosters, to allow for safe social distancing.)

Malin also makes the rounds giving out belly rubs and chin scritches to the animals. Read the full story, watch the video and learn more about the work of Daniel and his colleagues.

 

 

 

 

Daniel Malin, left, interacts with Romeo the tripod kitty, while next door another worker weighs a tuxedo cat. Below, a German shepherd mix enjoys a ray of sunlight.
 

 

 

 

[CNJRoss]

BART service advisory

 

 

04.21.20

 

Face coverings now required for BART riders

 

 

 

 

County health orders in Alameda, Contra Costa, San Francisco, and San Mateo now require all riders to wear face coverings inside BART stations and on-board trains.  The orders also require BART to take reasonable measures to remind the public that they need facing coverings and “must take all reasonable steps to prohibit any member of the public who is not wearing a face covering from entering and must not serve that person if those efforts are unsuccessful and seek to remove that person.” Failure to comply with the emergency health order is a misdemeanor.  Enforcement begins Wednesday, April 22, 2020.  Prior to the order, most BART riders were already wearing face coverings while riding.  BART will take the following steps to be compliant with the new orders.

 

Public Communication

• Signs with pictograms will be posted in all stations stating:  Face coverings required. Please keep 6 ft apart. Non-medical masks, bandanas, scarves, and cloth can be used.
• PA announcements inside stations and on-board trains
• Platform digital sign messages
• Website updates and social media posts

BART Police Deployment and Enforcement Strategies

 

BART Police Chief Ed Alvarez recently shifted deployment to focus police resources to the entrances of stations and near the faregates. This strategy was put into place to improve safety for our employees and riders and to prevent illegal behavior from occurring.  Continuing this deployment will help BART enforce the new orders.

 

BART Police will be responsible for reminding riders of the new requirement.  Consistent with BART’s current operating procedures, Station Agents will not be used to enforce the new public health emergency orders as they are not trained law enforcement personnel.  

 

BART Police will give verbal reminders of the requirement to riders without face coverings when police encounter someone not covering their mouth and nose.  Police personnel will remind the rider they have the option to use any material to cover their face. Only upon refusal to cover their face with any material will an officer ask the person to leave the system.

 

Riders should not confront others without a face covering.  If someone isn’t wearing a face covering, riders should move away from the individual. 

 

CDC recommends wearing cloth face coverings that can be fashioned from household items or made at home from common materials.  The cloth face coverings recommended are not surgical masks or N-95 respirators.  Those are critical supplies that must continue to be reserved for healthcare workers and other medical first responders, as recommended by current CDC guidance.

 

The impact of these orders on BART employees and contractors include:

• Employees and contractors must wear mask/ coverings when:
  • in any BART facility
  • in any BART parking lot or garage
  • in any train (in or out of service)
  • in any District vehicle with others
• Masks/ coverings are not required but must be readily available (around neck or in pocket) and can be quickly put on if someone enters the room or workspace in these situations:
  • in nonpublic office alone
  • in a breakroom alone
  • on the right of way, including yards and local control, where social distancing is observed (six-foot separation)

The new order does not replace the counties’ stay-at-home health order or the need to maintain physical distancing, wash hands frequently and cover coughs and sneezes – all fundamental to reducing the spread of COVID-19.

 

The District has distributed N95 and surgical masks to certain specified employees and will distribute surgical or cloth masks to all employees as required to comply with the health order.  Any employee who would prefer to wear their own face covering is welcome to do so.

 

[CNJRoss]

Thursday, April 23, 2020

To view this email as a web page, click here.

 

 

 

BART updates on COVID-19

 

New this week:

• County health orders in Alameda, Contra Costa, San Francisco, and San Mateo now require all riders to wear face coverings inside BART stations and on-board trains. 
• Early Bird Express service will be reduced or discontinued due to low ridership beginning Monday, April 27. 
• The Metropolitan Transportation Commission approved providing BART with $251.6 million in federal CARES Act FTA funding. The allocation is the first installment of the $1.3 billion in funding provided to Bay Area transit operators in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

 

More info here

 

 

 

 

Essential workers on BART

 

Meet Daniel Malin of San Francisco's SPCA who continues to take BART to provide essential services to animals in need. 

 

Meet Daniel

 

 

 

NEW #virtuallyBARTable video conference backgrounds now available!

 

 

What background are you?

 

 

 

 

 

#virtuallyBARTable | Online meditations

 

Ease fears, anxiety, or just find momentary peace with help from the various BARTable Bay Area meditation groups taking their practices online. Plus, meditating together with an online community or a teacher-led online mindfulness talk can provide a feeling of much-needed connection in these times.

 

Let's meditate

 

 

[CNJRoss]

BART news release

 

05.27.20

BART releases 15-step plan to welcome back riders as region reopens

 

 

 

BART is working hard to reimagine transit service as the region begins to reopen and riders return.  We understand the public is looking to us to provide reassurance that service is as safe as possible and social distancing is followed.  To welcome riders back and regain confidence in public transit, BART is taking the following 15 steps while continuing to explore new measures and technologies that could assist in a safe recovery.

 

15 Steps here.  Unable to post full release due large number of images.

[CNJRoss]

Cross-posted in BART Paper Ticket Phase Out

 

BART press release

 

Quote

06.02.20

 

BART expanding Clipper-only sales at stations systemwide through 2020

 

 

Starting the week of June 8, BART will accelerate its expansion of the number of stations where Clipper is the only fare product available for purchase. Since August of 2019, BART has eliminated the sales of paper tickets at five stations (19th Street/Oakland, Embarcadero, Powell Street, Downtown Berkeley and San Francisco International Airport).

 

Accelerating this effort is part of BART's 15-Step Plan to welcome riders back and will help to create a more contactless rider experience in the era of COVID-19.

 

At stations with parking, one ticket machine will be available for customers who opt to purchase a paper ticket to pay for parking. BART is also working to accelerate efforts to expand the official BART app parking payment feature to all stations (currently available at 5 stations) to offer contactless parking payments.

 

BART will schedule the stations each month and update the schedule here monthy. The following stations will be converted in June:

• Week of June 8       Dublin/Pleasanton Station
• Week of June 15     Coliseum and Oakland International Airport stations
• Week of June 22     Montgomery Street Station 
• Week of June 29     Civic Center Station

Touchless Experience

As shelter-in-place orders begin to lift, and customers return to the system, BART is working to prevent the spread of COVID-19.  Using Clipper helps this effort by allowing riders to avoid direct contact with fare gates, as the card only needs to be held over the fare gate card reader without touching. Riders can further protect themselves from contact with fare machines by loading funds onto their Clipper card online, allowing up to one day for the balance to post. For registered users, the Autoload feature will automatically replenish their Clipper balance.

 

While paper tickets will no longer be available for purchase at these stations, riders will still be able to use paper tickets to enter or exit through fare gates.  Riders will also be able to add enough fare to a paper ticket to exit the station using add fare machines located inside the paid area.

 

Clipper Benefits

BART is also moving to a Clipper-only fare payment system because the region has prioritized the use of Clipper as the Bay Area’s all-in-one transit card administered by the Metropolitan Transportation Commission. In addition to being contactless, Clipper has many advantages over paper tickets:

• Clipper saves money. Adult paper tickets have a 50 cents surcharge on every trip, which equals $1.00 per round trip. With a one-time acquisition fee of $3.00 for a Clipper card, it pays for itself in just 3 roundtrips.
• Clipper is reusable and long-lasting, unlike paper tickets that get worn and tattered.
• Clipper is accepted by nearly all transit agencies in the region. Many other agencies offer discounted fares when using Clipper.
• Riders can set up their Clipper card account to reload automatically
• The loaded value on the Clipper card is secure when it’s registered. If you lose the card, the balance can be replaced for a nominal fee.
• The tag in and out system allows Clipper card users to move through fare gates faster.
• Clipper cards can be purchased at every BART station and at many retail outlets throughout the region.
• Paper tickets can jam our fare gates, so Clipper usage means more open fare gates, shorter lines and less fare gate maintenance.
• Clipper usage reduces the paper waste of the magstripe tickets in the BART system.

 

Customers can use Clipper anonymously. Clipper cards do not require registration. Registration is required for added benefits such as Autoload and balance protection.

 

To get Clipper online, find in-person locations, or details about obtaining a discount card for Senior, Disabled or Youth 18 and under, please go to www.clippercard.com

 

See answers to some of the frequently asked questions (FAQ) and the transition to Clipper-only sales here.

 

For more information, visit bart.gov/clipper

 

 

[CNJRoss]

Progressive Railroading 6/6/20

 

BART: Facing a crisis of pandemic proportions

In January, General Manager Bob Powers was conducting an ongoing “listening tour” at Bay Area Rapid Transit’s (BART) subway stations and on trains, where he’d meet with riders to get their opinions on the agency’s service quality and policies.

 

Powers was deputy GM for two years when he was tapped in July 2019 to succeed retiring GM Grace Crunican. He joined BART in 2012 as assistant general manager of planning, development and construction. A professional engineer, Powers had decades of experience in public transportation, overseeing major infrastructure projects and transportation programs. 

 

So when he became BART’s top executive, Powers was charged with delivering its major projects — namely, the Fleet of the Future plan to replace aging rail cars; the system’s infrastructure rebuilding plan to replace worn rails, retrofit the Transbay Tube and update waterproofing in tunnels and other structures; the modernization of a 40-plus-year-old train control system; and the service expansion to Santa Clara County.

 

He also took control at a critical point for BART. In addition to those major projects underway, the agency was facing sliding ridership numbers.

 

“Our customer satisfaction levels are unacceptable,” Powers told The Mercury News last summer, pledging to hear directly from riders during a listening tour.

 

But less than a year later, the listening tour is on hold as Powers and BART’s board  — along with transit agencies across the country — figure out how to best serve the public during and after a global pandemic that has blown a big hole in agency budgets.

 

Continue here.

 

Cross-posted:  BART: Facing a crisis of pandemic proportions

[CNJRoss]

BART news release

 

06.29.20

  BART updates related to the coronavirus

 

 

The safety of BART riders and employees is our top priority.  This page is being continuously updated below to keep the public informed about our response efforts and BART ridership data through the pandemic.  

 

BART has released a 15-step plan outlining our efforts to welcome riders back as the region begins to reopen. The plan outlines what riders can expect when taking BART.

 

Stay informed of our plans by signing up for news alerts at https://cloud.info.bart.gov/signup

 

Scroll down for the daily update.

 

Jump to: BART to temporarily reduce service hours based on ridership data (This section outlines the latest service impacts)

Jump to: Response and Prevention Efforts  (This section outlines current cleaning procedures, face covering and social distancing requirements, and all efforts to provide safe service and to keep our employees healthy)

 

Find .pdfs of the temporary reduced service on our Schedules page

 

BART is providing daily ridership data so our riders know the number of people riding each day, a key indicator of crowding (or lack of).  We are running long trains all day despite low ridership to help with social distancing. Scroll down for daily COVID-19 news updates.

 

    Continue for daily ridership data.

[CNJRoss]

BART news release

 

06.29.20

  Contactless parking payment now available systemwide

 

 

As part of our 15-step plan to welcome back riders as the region reopens, we are expanding contactless parking payment via the official BART app to all stations that offer parking.

 

With the feature, riders can park at any station and pay for their parking stall on their phones through the official BART app, allowing them to avoid touching payment machines.

 

The payment feature marks a milestone in BART’s efforts to modernize BART’s parking payment and enforcement systems and address longstanding wishes from riders throughout the system.

 

“Part of our 15-step Welcome Back plan in this era of COVID-19 is to protect our riders by reducing the number of touchpoints they encounter”, says BART General Manager Bob Powers. “The parking payment by app feature helps us fulfill that commitment while modernizing the rider experience as customers continue to return to the system.”

 

The agency’s most significant parking payment modernization effort to date initially launched in February 2019 with the Early Bird Express parking feature of the app. In March 2020, a 5-station pilot program was implemented at Antioch, West Oakland, Hayward, South San Francisco and El Cerrito Del Norte stations.

 

Paying for parking is easier than ever

The new daily fee parking payment feature allows riders to pay through their credit card, debit card, Venmo or PayPal account. Riders can choose paying individually for each parking transaction or creating a wallet which will deduct parking fees from the balance. A convenience fee may be applied at a later date for individual parking transactions so riders are encouraged to create a wallet which will automatically load $25 each time the balance drops below $5.

 

To use the new daily fee parking payment feature, riders will need to download the latest version of the official BART app, create a profile, enter a Clipper card number and a parking payment method (credit card, debit card, Venmo or PayPal account). After parking, riders will need to pay for their daily fee parking before they tag into the station with the Clipper card registered with the official BART app profile. 

 

Previously daily fee parkers had to memorize their stall number, wait in line, and pay with cash or use the same paper ticket they entered with or BART’s EZ rider program.  These options remain available. EZ rider customers can easily close their accounts to begin using the official BART app parking payment feature.

 

All parking permits payments will continue to be sold online through Select-a-Spot and are not yet offered through the official BART app.   

 

Learn more about the new daily fee parking payment feature on the official BART app at www.bart.gov/parking

 

Carpool program expands

The app has offered other parking payment options prior to the daily fee parking payment, including parking payment for Early Bird Express riders and carpoolers at select stations. BART’s carpool program is now available at all stations with Permit parking. Accessible through the official BART app, the carpool program allows carpoolers to park in the permit sections of BART parking lots, which fill later and have greater availability.

 

 

 

 

Cross-posted:  BART Contactless parking payment now available systemwide