Minor schedule adjustments go into effect on Monday 8/12/24 to improve service and connections

BART is making minor changes to the schedule beginning Monday, August 12, 2024, to improve key connections and to provide less crowding by better spacing of trains.

Some departure times have shifted by a few minutes, and we encourage riders to check the schedule before August 12th to see if their trip is impacted.

The BART Trip Planner has been updated with the new schedule so riders can start planning their trips using the date August 12, 2024, and beyond. PDF timetables of the new schedule are posted below. BART shared the new schedule with all partner transit agencies in March 2024 to give time for them to ensure schedules are aligned and transfers are timed as best as possible. All Bay Area transit agencies are working together to advance schedule bid alignment (in August and January) as part of efforts to improve transfer timing across the region.

Yellow line adjustments

While the intervals between trains will remain at 8 and 12 minutes, we are swapping the pattern of Pittsburg Bay Point bound and Antioch bound trains to ease crowding on the trains that serve the transfer platform.

Even spacing on Orange and Green lines

Riders on the Berryessa line will experience better train spacing than ever before. The Green and Orange line will still run every 20 minutes, but trains serving the Berryessa line will now be evenly spaced 10 minutes apart. This reduces crowding and offers an option for riders every 10 minutes for those willing to transfer to complete their trip.

Blue to Orange line transfer improvement at Bay Fair

BART will bring back the connection from the Blue line to the Orange line at Bay Fair. In the September 2023 schedule change, riders coming from Dublin and travelling towards Richmond were hit with a 17-minute wait at Bay Fair to make the Blue line to Orange line transfer. Instead, riders were given the option of a very tight transfer opportunity at West Oakland to a Red Line/Richmond train. The much easier connection at Bay Fair will return on August 12th.

BART and Caltrain schedule coordination at Millbrae

Both BART and Caltrain will make changes to improve some of the transfers at Millbrae. The improvements will go into effect when Caltrain launches its electric service on September 21. With BART’s schedule change in August and Caltrain’s schedule change in September, ~85% of all weekday trains will have a transfer between 5 and 19 minutes at Millbrae Station. On the weekend, ~90% of trains will have a transfer between 5 and 19 minutes.

5-19 minutes allows for both systems to be off schedule a bit but still provide a reliable connection. If trains were scheduled with less than a 5-minute wait, delays would frequently break the transfer and result in a longer wait.

Transfers at Millbrae don’t always line up perfectly because Caltrain has four trains per peak hour and two trains per off-peak hour/weekends. While BART has three trains per hour at all times. Both systems are also limited in flexibility due to key system timing points elsewhere.

Transit Coordination

Bay Area transit agencies are syncing schedules in a whole new way with a focus on improving transfers between systems and making schedule changes at the same time. Agencies convened a meeting in March 2024 to share planned changes for mid-August and to look for opportunities to improve transfers. Advancing schedule change alignment is a key priority for Bay Area transit general managers who meet on a weekly basis to make transit more rider-focused and efficient. The major agencies are already working on another iteration of a coordinated schedule change to go into effect in January 2025. These coordinated schedule changes will benefit current transit riders while attracting new riders. Read more about these efforts and see details of the August improvements.

Early Bird Express Bus Service

On August 12, 2024 the following Early Bird Express bus trips served by AC Transit will be eliminated:

Eliminated Route

Origin/Destination

Operator

Time

Alternatives

706

Bay Fair to Salesforce via 19th St.

AC Transit

4:21am

4:04am 703 bus*

4:45am BART train

707

Fremont to Salesforce

AC Transit

3:50am

4:55am BART train

*The 703 AC Transit bus from Dublin/Pleasanton Station to Salesforce Transit Center will now depart at 3:47am and will now serve what was previously the 706 with a stop at Bay Fair at 4:04am, then at Fruitvale at 4:20am, then arrive at the Salesforce Transit Center at 4:40am.

View the Early Bird Express page for complete service information.