How do I ride the BART
Sarah Silva
Updated on April 12, 2026
Each person must have his or her own ticket, except children age 4 and under, who ride free and do not need a ticket. Be sure to keep your ticket. You will need it to enter and exit the BART station through the fare gates. Please keep your BART ticket away from magnetic objects.
How does BART work?
When you enter a BART station, you will find pay stations with charts listing fares to each station. Respective costs going to stations will be reflected from every station. You can also use the fare calculator to find how much fares are beforehand. Machines take bills up to $20 as well as credit and debit cards.
What is BART card called?
BART Fares Clipper is a “smart card” with stored value that can be used on various Bay Area transit operators. Clipper cards can be purchased at fare machines in all BART stations—there is a one-time $3.00 fee for the card.
How do BART trains work?
Propulsion is provided by four 150-HP, air-cooled, electric traction motors – one per axle. Tractive energy is furnished via the third rail operating at 1000 volts DC. In brake mode, the cars are designed to regenerate energy to the third rail.Do you tag off on BART?
You only tag off BART and CalTrain because fares are based on the distance that you travel on them not busses or subway, but you do tag on all of those.. You just tag on. On MUNI buses you “beep” every time you board a bus. On MUNI metro you tag at the gates for entrance, not for exit.
How early does BART start?
Starting August 2, 2021, BART will expand its hours and significantly increase service: Weekday service will be 5am-12am (currently 5am-9pm) with 15-min frequencies on all lines from 5am-8pm and 30-minute frequencies from 8pm-midnight.
How safe is the BART?
BART itself is safer than most local bus systems, and the portion of BART between the airport and San Francisco is especially safe. At the weeknight hours you’ll be riding, most folks will be airport passengers or workers.
Does BART go under water?
BART goes into an underwater tube that runs from SF to Oakland. There are two tubes-one for coming to the East Bay and one for coming to San Francisco FROM the East Bay. It is not a glass tube; it is like traveling in a tunnel.How fast does the BART train travel?
BART has 8 DMU train cars which each have a seating capacity of 104. 70 mph maximum; 35 mph average, including 20-second station stops.
Where does the BART train go?Welcome to BART! Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) connects the San Francisco Peninsula with communities in the East Bay and South Bay. BART service currently extends as far as Millbrae, Richmond, Antioch, Dublin/Pleasanton, and Berryessa/North San José.
Article first time published onHow do you use Clipper card on iPhone?
- Open the Wallet app on your iPhone and press the plus “+” icon.
- Select Transit Card.
- Select “Clipper card” from the list and tap Continue.
- Select the value amount to add and follow prompts to complete purchase (Note: This is the only way you will be able to add cash value to your phone in Apple Wallet)
How do I leave the BART?
If you need to exit a station without riding the train, please see the Station Agent first and do not go through the fare gate. The Agent will be better able to help if you have not processed your ticket or Clipper® card to exit. A lost ticket, by policy, requires that you pay Excursion fare.
Does BART take Apple pay?
Customers can now add a new or existing Clipper card directly through Apple Wallet and load cash value with Apple Pay anytime, anywhere.
What happens if you forget to tag off Clipper?
If you forget to tag off, that’s the fare you will pay. But if you tag off, Clipper will return the difference of $6 to your card. The other reason to tag off is to take advantage of eligible free or discounted rides when you transfer from one transit agency to another.
How sketchy is the BART?
NBC Bay Area reveals that BART is “one of the most dangerous transportation systems in the country,” and details how rampant various crimes have become, and which stations are the worst for violent crime.
Is BART expensive?
Once you know where your trip is starting and where it will end, you’ll need to know how much the fare costs. The easiest way to learn this is to check the BART fare calculator. The fares start at $1.95 for short rides, up to $15 or more for the longest rides that include airports.
Is BART safe bay area?
Now that San Francisco and the rest of the Bay Area are reopened, Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) is welcoming visitors back and ensuring that the safety and health of riders is the top priority. To reassure everyone that service is as safe as possible, BART has implemented a rigorous safety plan.
Does BART run at 4am?
On February 11, 2019, BART shifted its start of service from 4am to 5am on weekdays to allow extra time for a critical seismic retrofit of the Transbay Tube. The project is expected to be complete in Fall 2023. About 2,900 riders entered our system in that first hour of service.
What time does BART start running to the airport?
BART Schedule Use the BART Trip Planner to look up BART departure and arrival times. 5:00 a.m. to Midnight. Sat: 6:14 a.m. to Midnight. Sun: 7:30 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.
How often do BART trains run?
Monday-Friday service will run every 30 minutes on each line systemwide all day, with 3-line service beginning earlier in the evening and single tracking in San Francisco starting at around 8pm. Effectively, every other train is being cancelled Monday-Friday.
How many cars does BART train have?
A CarCar length75 ft (23 m)Floor height39 in (990 mm)EntrylevelDoors4
How much does a BART car cost?
The Board gave the go-ahead for not just the base order of 260 rail cars but also an additional 150 for a total of 410 new cars at an average cost of about $2.2 million per car. All 410 cars could be in service within eight years.
Are BART trains color coded?
BART’s new train cars feature many new improvements. … Easy to use: routes are color coded like the BART system map, and next stop information is readily available via automated announcements and digital screens.
How far underwater is Bart?
Traveling under San Francisco Bay proved to be safer than over it during Tuesday’s earthquake. Riders made it safely through BART’s four-mile long underwater tunnel linking San Francisco and Oakland. But there were harrowing moments for passengers all along the 71.5-mile Bay Area Rapid Transit system.
How long is the BART tunnel under the bay?
OverviewOperatorSan Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit DistrictCharacterRapid transitTechnicalLine length3.6 mi (5.8 km)
How deep is Bart underwater?
Constructed in 57 sections, and reposing on the bay floor as deep as 135 feet beneath the surface, the remarkable $180 million structure took six years of toil and seismic studies to design, and less than three years to contract.
Does BART run to San Jose?
On Saturday, June 13, 2020, BART service will finally connect to San Jose, the most populous city in the Bay Area. Both General Managers signed the Project Safety and Security Certificate, the last project milestone before the system can begin serving passengers.
How long are BART trains?
Rapid transit trains have 4–10 cars, the maximum length of 710 feet (216 m) being the longest of any metro system in the United States and extending slightly beyond the 700-foot (213 m) platforms. Cars are 10.5 feet (3.2 m) wide, the maximum gradient is four percent, and the minimum curve radius is 394 feet (120 m).
How many BART lines are there?
BART has 50 stations: 19 on the surface, 15 elevated, and 16 underground (i.e. subway).
How do I activate my Clipper card?
If you added a Clipper card directly through your mobile wallet, you will need to register your card online or in the Clipper app. Youth, Senior and RTC Clipper cards are automatically registered, but you’ll need to give us a call at 877.878. 8883 (TDD/TTY: 711 or 800.735. 2929) to set up an online account.
How do you use the Clipper app on the bus?
To use Clipper on your phone, tag your phone by holding it near a Clipper reader every time you tag on and off of transit. There’s no need to open an app. Once you hear a single beep or see a green light — that means you’ve paid your fare and are good to go.