BART could close 15 Stations, lay off 1,200 without sales tax measure

By Da Lin

BART officials are warning of deep service cuts and station closures if Bay Area voters reject a proposed regional sales tax measure on the November ballot.

Under BART’s worst-case scenario, the transit agency would close up to 15 stations and lay off about 1,200 workers in 2027. The cuts stem from a projected $376 million budget deficit for the upcoming fiscal year, which runs from July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2027.

The shortfall reflects a dramatic decline in ridership since the pandemic. BART said ridership remains more than 50% lower than pre-pandemic levels in 2019, largely due to the rise of remote work and fewer daily commutes into San Francisco. Unlike many transit systems, BART relied heavily on fare revenue to operate its service.

Steven Valadez, a daily BART rider, travels from his home in Antioch to his job at a restaurant in Orinda. He said the system is noticeably less crowded than it once was.

“Before the pandemic, there were definitely more people. Sometimes, you wouldn’t even be able to sit. Now, I never have a problem finding a seat,” Valadez said.

BART spokesperson Alicia Trost said while some riders have returned, many now commute only a few days a week.

“Many BART riders are back, and that’s great. But they’re only taking BART a few days a week. And that has had a huge impact on our bottom line,” Trost said.

Without voter approval of the tax measure, BART said it would likely close 10 stations in January 2027. Those stations are Pittsburg Center, North Concord/Martinez, Orinda, South San Francisco, San Bruno, Castro Valley, West Dublin/Pleasanton, South Hayward, Warm Springs, and the Oakland International Airport connector from Coliseum Station.

The system would also shut down earlier each night, ending service at 9 p.m. instead of midnight, and riders would experience longer wait times between trains. If additional cuts are needed, BART would close five more stations in July 2027. The additional stations proposed for closure are Colma, Millbrae, Dublin/Pleasanton, Pittsburg/Bay Point, and Antioch.

Trost said one of the most severe changes would be the elimination of an entire line.

“I think the most dramatic here is the blue line, it’s just completely eliminated. And that would basically look like what BART ran from 1976 to 1994,” she said.

For riders like Valadez, the potential closures could be life-altering. The two stations he relies on would be closed, and he does not own a car.

“For me, that would be horrible. I would have to pretty much find a new job because I wouldn’t know how to do that commute anymore,” he said.

BART is asking voters to approve a regional sales tax increase to stabilize its finances. The proposal would raise sales taxes by half a percent in Alameda, Contra Costa, San Mateo, and Santa Clara counties, and by 1% in San Francisco.

Not everyone supports the measure. Former BART Board Director Debora Allen said she plans to vote against it, blaming years of irresponsible spending for the agency’s financial troubles. She criticized BART for expanding service hours and adding trains after COVID, even as ridership declined.

“I am a solid no on this measure,” Allen said.

Allen described BART’s warning as overly dramatic.

“It is a scare tactic. It is what I call Armageddon. I think to vote yes on this tax measure, you are voting yes on more of the same, wasteful, abusive, and even, yes, sometimes there is fraud, too,” she said.

Allen said she left the BART Board of Directors at the end of 2024 because she could never receive enough votes from fellow directors to make the changes she wanted. She accused the transit agency of being run by an executive management team fully directed by labor unions. She said she believes the only way to fix BART’s long-term budget woes is to let the agency go bankrupt.

“The alternative is that they would have to file bankruptcy. It’s not like they go out of business. They have to go through a state process, and my hope is that the state would come in and take them over,” said Allen.

Valadez said that would be too drastic and too disruptive to the entire Bay Area. He said he feels he has little choice but to support the measure.

“Whatever we’ve got to do, I’m willing to do it. Because I cannot risk losing my station here [in Orinda] and losing my station at Antioch,” he said.

Transportation officials warned that the impacts of station closures would extend beyond transit riders, forcing more drivers onto already congested Bay Area freeways.