BART Considers Range of Options for Retired Vehicles

By 2022, about 670 train cars in the Bay Area Rapid Transit system will be replaced with new vehicles, reports Joe Fitzgerald Rodriguez. The BART board of directors is considering a wide array of possibilities for the decommissioned cars.

They could be sold to another operator or for scrap or recycling. The cars also could be repurposed for housing or restaurants. "One party has even reached out to the agency about buying BART cars to use for Airbnb listings," says Rodriguez.

BART could also donate the cars to museums, the military, or schools for training and educational use. Another idea is to donate them for use as homeless or temporary shelters.

Rodriguez notes that the decision on the final destination of the trains might be influenced by the fact that BART will owe the Federal Transit Administration 70 percent of the value of the cars since the FTA helped pay for them. As a result, any donations may end up costing the agency.