Top U.S. Transit System Named

In an apparent surprise to riders, the American Public Transit Association names northern California's Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) the top transit system in America.

1 minute read

August 25, 2004, 7:00 AM PDT

By Chris Steins @planetizen


"Topping the list [of accomplishments] was BART opening the four-station extension to San Francisco International Airport after decades of political squabbling and years of tricky construction. BART's nine-page nomination paper makes note that the opening came off "without a hitch" -- but includes no mention that the number of riders is still a small fraction of what BART expected... The investment paid off. BART's customer satisfaction surveys have seen continued improvement, even as BART in recent years had to raise fares and shorten trains in budget-cutting moves.

... The APTA judges apparently ignored or haven't heard the grumblings of some of BART's 305,000 daily passengers in the wake of service cuts and fare hikes."

Thanks to MTC Library

Tuesday, August 24, 2004 in The Oakland Tribune

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