While BART brought back service that goes until midnight six nights a week last year, the trains were still stopping at 9 p.m. on Sundays. But full, pre-pandemic service, including a full schedule on Sunday until midnight, starts up again in ten days.
There's a bit of tug-of-war happening on the BART board these days about how to address a future of low ridership and budget shortfalls. Some directors feel that train service needs to remain robust and available if they're ever going to win back pre-pandemic riders — and be useful to commuters if and when those real, crushing rush hours return. And at least one director (Debora Allen) is calling for service cuts and potential layoffs, rather than turning to Bay Area residents for higher taxes to cover the gaps.
For now, though, BART is getting back to its pre-pandemic, not-quite-24-hour service as of February 20. That is when Sunday trains will resume on three lines between 9 p.m. and midnight. The exception to completely full service, as KPIX reports, will be 12 Sundays when trains will be single-tracking through San Francisco due to ongoing cable replacement work.
BART says the Sunday service is especially historic because, for the first time in BART's history, there will be five-line service until 9 p.m.
Also, BART says, five-line service will be returning daily starting February 14 until about 9 p.m. Three-line service — with transfers usually necessary in the East Bay — will be daily from 9 to midnight.
In the video below, BART spokesperson Alicia Trost explains that another schedule improvement will help riders from the Dublin area traveling to the new stations in South Fremont and San Jose.
"More riders are coming in from the Dublin line and heading towards Berryessa," Trost says. "The schedule change includes a new transfer opportunity at Bay Fair every day during all service hours. Riders from Dublin on the Blue line will see a Green or Orange line train across the platform [when they arrive]." She adds, "This transfer has a tight window but the September 2022 schedule change will increase the window to allow for more flexibility to make the meet if there are delays."
With the new five-line service, BART is hoping to bring more and equitable convenience to its riders.
"Running 5-Line service on Sundays provides more equitable service to Richmond and Berryessa line riders who previously had to transfer to complete their transbay trip-while other lines provided direct service," BART says. "Based on ridership data 97% of Sunday riders will get to their destination without the need to transfer, up from 82%."
