BART is touting that fare evasion may have dropped by one third since they started putting in those so-called “evasion-proof” fare gates, though this is just based on some informal poll they did where they asked riders if they saw anyone hopping the gates.
It’s been nearly a year and a half since BART installed the first of their “evasion-proof” fare gates at West Oakland station, and those gates have been put up at lots more stations since, with now about 20 stations having them. And BART insisted in a Monday announcement that the gates are paying huge dividends. According to KRON4, BART says the fare gates have significantly reduced fare evasion compared to this time last year.
Though the methodology behind this conclusion is not exactly airtight. BART simply did a poll, asking riders if they saw “anyone enter or exit the station without paying their fare today?” But only 17% of respondents said yes, compared to 25% who said yes in a similar poll at the same time last year. So BART concludes from this that it’s "a drop of nearly 1/3 from the same period just a year ago."
“The decline in fare evasion sightings is the latest indication that Next Generation Fare Gates are transforming the rider experience,” BART general manager Bob Powers said in a Monday press release. “We know it’s not possible to stop 100% of fare evasion, but we are seeing that these state-of-the-art, durable gates are proving themselves to be more resistant to fare evaders and are deterring unwanted activity on BART.”
It does stand to reason that fare evasion would be down substantially — those new gates are indeed somewhat difficult to get through without paying (though some have found ways). And there is no disputing that crime has definitely dropped since those gates started going up, with BART Police data showing a 17% drop in crime systemwide in 2024.
Parenthetically, Glen Park BART station commuters will notice that those new gates are going up in that station this week, as well as at the Concord, El Cerrito Plaza, and San Leandro stations. All 50 Bay Area BART stations are expected to have the new gates by the end of 2025.
Image: Joe Kukura, SFist
