BART Riders Have to Stand For It

If you ride BART during the morning or evening, there's a good chance you may have to stand.

Transit agency officials say BART's weekday ridership is approaching its record highs of 2008, making it sometimes difficult for passengers to find a seat during peak commute times.

In recent months, BART ridership has averaged more than 360,000 on weekdays. On Wednesday, April 20, the passenger load peaked at 375,000.

About 57 percent of BART riders travel from 7-10 a.m. and 4-7 p.m. Ridership is about 190,000 people during those six hours.

The downtown San Francisco stations are averaging 46,500 entrances and exits on weekday mornings, slightly higher than 2008 levels.

BART officials say the reasons for the increase are the improving economy creating more jobs, and rising gasoline prices driving people to public transit.

BART says they are putting every car they can on the tracks during commute hours. Lately, 573 of the system's 669 train cars were used during peak times. The rest are undergoing scheduled maintenance or component upgrades.

"We don't let a car operate unless we have complete confidence in its safety and reliability," said Jay Bolcik, BART's manager of schedules and service planning.

Some commuters said they are used to standing and haven't really noticed the trains being any more crowded than usual.

Anna Larsen usually rides BART from her home in San Francisco to her job in Berkeley. On a recent afternoon, she took the train to Walnut Creek to meet a friend.

She said she actually got a seat but only because she got on the train at Civic Center before crowds emerged in downtown San Francisco.

She said she doesn't always get a seat during her commute, but that's OK.

"It's actually great because it means the economy is getting better," she said.

The passenger increase also means BART parking lots are filling up more quickly. BART's website lists each station and what time its parking lot fills up.

A quick check revealed most station lots are full by 8 a.m.

El Cerrito Plaza is usually full by 7:50 a.m.

Your best bet? The Ashby station in Berkeley normally has spaces until 8 a.m.

(No fill time was listed for the North Berkeley BART station parking lot.)

Many stations also have a range of bike parking options for those interested in alternative transportation.

BART officials have urged passengers to be more patient and courteous as trains get more crowded.

They ask riders to move to the center of the cars when they enter. They also ask bicyclists to follow the rules closely and for passengers to enter and exit cars politely.

Ridership statistics were presented to BART's board of directors Thursday.

Everybody makes mistakes ... ! If there's something in this article you think should be corrected, or if something else is amiss, give editor Emilie Raguso a call at 510-459-8325 or shoot her an e-mail at emilier@patch.com.