BART trains and platforms in downtown San Francisco for the past few days have looked much like they did during the pre-pandemic morning and afternoon rush hour commutes: packed to the brim, with people standing shoulder to shoulder with no empty seats in sight, and each other hold onto the wrist straps and poles while scrolling their phones.
However, these crowded trains have less to do with a sudden surge in BART ridership and more to do with the fact that the regional railroad agency is still grappling with the lingering effects of recent storms that brought rain to the Bay Area.
For weeks, BART has been running shorter trains – eight cars instead of 10 – while mechanics work to fix flat spots on train wheels that developed due to slippery rails on 101 cars. Several canceled trains have also exacerbated the problem, leading to overcrowded trains during rush hours.
The shorter trains during peak commute times have angered BART drivers, who have also experienced a spate of cancellations in recent weeks, leading some BART to tweet why there are service disruptions weeks after the storms have abated.
This is totally wild. The rain paralyzed 1/8 of your fleet? How Does Chicago Run Trains All Winter?
— Cody James :rainbow: (@ec0logical) January 10, 2023
As of last week, the agency said 40 cars were missing out of the 636 cars needed for regular weekday service of 10-car trains. According to the agency, BART mechanics take up to 20 hours to reshape the wheels on each car to get it back to service.
It’s unclear when the issue will be fully resolved, although Shane Edwards, BART’s assistant operations manager, said BART is gradually adding another 10-car trains during peak travel periods as the cars are repaired.
BART officials acknowledged rider frustration at Thursday’s board meeting, saying the shorter trains coupled with cancellations have created a recipe for crowded trains, even as BART rider numbers are about 60% below 2019 levels.
“Canceled eight-car (runs) undermine our ability to bring drivers back,” said BART Director Mark Foley.
BART rider numbers have remained broadly flat since late summer at about 40% of pre-pandemic levels and were 7% below the agency’s forecasts through December. The unrelenting storms also resulted in a drop in BART rider numbers for the first two weeks of the new year.
Ridership on BART has since increased despite the disruption to service. Nearly 162,000 people rode BART on Wednesday, up 36,000 from Wednesday two weeks ago. This day of the week now attracts the most drivers in the new era of hybrid work.
Ricardo Cano is a contributor to the San Francisco Chronicle. Email: [email protected] Twitter: @ByRicardoCano