History UsefulNotes / BayAreaRapidTransit

* Finally, and most infamously, the entire South Bay (including the Bay Area's largest city, San Jose) had no coverage before 2015. That changed when BART extended the Fremont line to Warm Springs in 2015, and into the east part of San Jose in 2020 with new stops in Milpitas and Berryessa. These stops also tie BART into the VTA light rail system. There have been plans to extend BART all the way down to Santa Clara, terminating at the Santa Clara Caltrain Station, although lack of funds have prevented this stage of the extension from being seriously put into action just yet.

In 2013, a variety of disputes led to BART workers going on several strikes, with each strike completely shutting down BART service and dealing a huge blow to the Bay Area commute. On the other hand, after the 1989 earthquake caused a partial collapse of the Bay Bridge, BART continued to run, as it had suffered no damage (having been designed with earthquakes in mind), allowing East Bay commuters to get to their jobs without having to drive. It is still considered BART's finest hour.

* '''Richmond – Warm Springs/South Fremont''': The very first BART line, and the only one of the five long-haul lines to not touch San Francisco. The Coliseum/Airport station is connected directly to Oakland International Airport by a peoplemover line with its own listing. The line was extended to the Warm Springs/South Fremont station (yes, that's one station) in 2017, and a further extension to Berryessa/North San Jose (also one station) is scheduled to open sometime in 2020.

* '''Warm Springs/South Fremont – Daly City''': Goes up from Warm Springs/South Fremont like the Richmond - Warm Springs/South Fremont line, before diverging at Oakland to travel to San Francisco and eventually Daly City.

* Finally, and most infamously, the entire South Bay (including the Bay Area's largest city, San Jose) had no coverage before 2015. That changed when BART extended the Fremont line to Warm Springs in 2015, and into the east part of San Jose in 2018 with new stops in Milpitas and Berryessa. These stops also tie BART into the VTA light rail system. There have been plans to extend BART all the way down to Santa Clara, terminating at the Santa Clara Caltrain Station, although lack of funds have prevented this stage of the extension from being seriously put into action just yet.

Trains have anywhere between 3-10 cars. The seats are infamous for being filthy and carrying several strains of dangerous bacteria, thanks in no small part to less sanitary passengers; reports of [[{{Squick}} vagrants "using the bathroom" on the train]] are not unheard of. Thankfully, recent projects have been aimed at replacing these crappy old seats with fresh-looking and easier-to-clean new ones. The car floors are usually made of carpet, but some cars will have composite flooring instead; there are plans to eventually apply this to call cars in the system.

* '''Richmond – Warm Springs/South Fremont''': The very first BART line, and the only one of the five long-haul lines to not touch San Francisco. A peoplemover line completed in 2014 connects the Coliseum/Airport station directly to Oakland International Airport. The line was extended to the Warm Springs/South Fremont station (yes, that's one station) in 2017, and a further extension to Berryessa/North San Jose (also one station) is scheduled to open sometime in 2020.

* '''Richmond – Warm Springs/South Fremont''': The very first BART line. Only one of five to not touch San Francisco. A peoplemover line completed in 2014 connects the Coliseum/Airport station directly to Oakland International Airport. The line was extended to the Warm Springs/South Fremont station (yes, that's one station) in 2017, and a further extension to Berryessa/North San Jose (also one station) is scheduled to open sometime in 2020.
* '''Antioch - SFO/Millbrae''': Actually a combination of two separate lines using completely different rolling stock. The segment from Antioch to Pittsburg/Bay Point (also one station), known as '''[=eBART=]''', is light rail using diesel-powered trains running on standard-gauge (4 ft 8½ in/1435 mm) track, unlike the heavy-rail electric trains running on the broad-gauge (5 ft 6 in/1676 mm) core BART network. There's an existing option to extend [=eBART=] to Brentwood. Yes, the use of slashes is a little confusing. The heavy-rail segment, the second line to open, runs from the Pittsburg/Bay Point station and goes through Oakland, San Francisco, and various smaller cities past SF. At different times in the line's history, it terminated at San Francisco International Airport (SFO) and Millbrae, with the terminus even differing depending on date and time of day. As of February 2020, all trains from Pittsburg/Bay Point terminate at SFO at all times. South of SFO, there's...

* '''Warm Springs/South Fremont - Daly City''': Goes up from Warm Springs/South Fremont like the Richmond - Warm Springs/South Fremont line, before diverging at Oakland to travel to San Francisco and eventually Daly City.
* '''Richmond - Daly City/Millbrae''': Follows the Richmond - Fremont line before splitting off to cross the Bay and terminate at Daly City or Millbrae. The Millbrae station also services Caltrain, which runs to San Jose (with limited commuter service all the way to Gilroy).
* '''Dublin/Pleasanton - Daly City''': The most recent heavy-rail line, it follows the Fremont - Daly City line going from Daly City to Bay Fair station in San Leandro, then splits off to travel through Castro Valley and into Dublin and Pleasanton to the Dublin/Pleasanton station (also one station). BART is currently investigating extending the Dublin/Pleasanton end of the line east to Livermore.

'''Bay Area Rapid Transit''' (BART, pronounced like the name of a certain ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' character, not "bee ay arr tee") is the token rapid transit system of the UsefulNotes/SanFrancisco Bay Area. While smaller than most metro systems, with only 104 miles of track and 44 stations, it is nonetheless a major staple of the Bay Area's image and a lifeline of daily Bay Area commute...unless you live in the North Bay, the Peninsula, or in the South Bay.

Currently, five lines serve the BART network:
* '''Richmond - Fremont''': The very first BART line. Only one of five to not touch San Francisco. A peoplemover line completed in 2014 connects the Coliseum/Airport station directly to Oakland International Airport.
* '''Pittsburg/Bay Point - SFO/Millbrae''': Runs from the Pittsburg/Bay Point station (yes, that's one station) and goes through Oakland, San Francisco, various smaller cities past SF, before terminating at either San Francisco International Airport (on weekdays during the day and evenings) or Millbrae (all other days and times). Yes, the use of slashes is a little confusing. Currently being extended (via the "eBART" Diesel line) to Antioch, with an option to continue all the way to Brentwood.
* '''Fremont - Daly City''': Goes up from Fremont like the Richmond - Fremont line, before diverging at Oakland to travel to San Francisco and eventually Daly City.

* '''Dublin/Pleasanton - Daly City''': The most recent line, it follows the Fremont - Daly City line going from Daly City to Bay Fair station in San Leandro, then splits off to travel through Castro Valley and into Dublin and Pleasanton to the Dublin/Pleasanton station (also one station). BART is currently investigating extending the Dublin/Pleasanton end of the line east to Livermore.

* Finally, and most infamously, as of 2014 the entire South Bay (including the Bay Area's largest city, San Jose) has no coverage. However, BART plans to resolve this by 2018, first extending the Fremont line to Warm Springs by 2015, and into the east part of San Jose by 2018 with new stops in Milpitas and Berryessa. These stops will also tie BART into the VTA light rail system. There have been plans to extend BART all the way down to Santa Clara, terminating at the Santa Clara Caltrain Station, although lack of funds have prevented this stage of the extension from being seriously put into action just yet.

The reasons for these omissions go back to BART's origins; Santa Clara County declined to join the Bay Area Rapid Transit District at its inception in 1957, instead spending money on a system of expressways. San Mateo County voted to withdraw in December 1961 because it didn't want to lose commerce to San Francisco and felt it was sufficiently served by Southern Pacific's existing Peninsula Commuter Service[[note]]ironically, the county had to scramble to pay for the trains anyway in the late 1970s when SP petitioned to discontinue the line due to mounting losses, turning it into the Caltrain service.[[/note]]. Only a few months after that, Marin County was ''forced'' out due to doubts of its ability to pay for its service and engineering questions about attaching a rail line to the underside of the Golden Gate Bridge. Fortunately, actions have been taken to rectify some of these issues. San Mateo County contributed $200 million to extensions in the East Bay as a "buy-in", and in return between 1996 and 2003 service was extended down to Millbrae and SFO without the county having to officially join BARTD. Construction on a South Bay extension (also funded via a "buy-in" of federal grants and local sales taxes) began in 2012 and is expected to be completed in 2018, with the extension reaching out to the Berryessa neighborhood of northeast San Jose. Approval of a second phase of the extension that would continue to downtown San Jose and Santa Clara is currently awaiting additional funds. As for the North Bay...well, [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonoma-Marin_Area_Rail_Transit SMART]] is under development, and there's always the ferry if you just ''have'' to get to [[UsefulNotes/SanFrancisco The City]] without using the Golden Gate Bridge.

In 2013, a variety of disputes led to BART workers going on several strikes, with each strike completely shutting down BART service and dealing a huge blow to the Bay Area commute.

Following a series of studies that indicated the decrepit, privately owned [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Key_System Key System]] of streetcars and buses would be insufficient for the Bay Area's growing postwar population, the Bay Area Rapid Transit District was founded in 1957. Work on the first test track segment between Walnut Creek and Concord began in June 1964 (with the opening ceremonies attended by [[UsefulNotes/LyndonJohnson LBJ]]), construction of the core system (including the Transbay Tube, miles of track under and through downtown San Francisco and several other cities, and a tunnel through the Berkeley Hills) took place over the next eight years, and the system was officially launched in 1972. BART initially opened up for service with one line between the [=MacArthur=] station in UsefulNotes/{{Oakland}} and Fremont Station in, well, Fremont. Since then, BART has expanded to cover more of the East Bay, as well as the San Francisco side of the SF Bay via the famous Transbay Tube (which opened in 1974 and runs under the Bay parallel to the SF-Oakland Bay Bridge).

The reasons for these omissions go back to BART's origins; Santa Clara County declined to join the Bay Area Rapid Transit District at its inception in 1957, instead spending money on a system of expressways. San Mateo County voted to withdraw in December 1961 because it didn't want to lose commerce to San Francisco and felt it was sufficiently served by Southern Pacific's existing Peninsula Commuter Service[[note]]ironically, the county had to scramble to pay for the trains anyway in the late 1970s when SP petitioned to discontinue the line due to mounting losses[[/note]]. Only a few months after that, Marin County was ''forced'' out due to doubts of its ability to pay for its service and engineering questions about attaching a rail line to the underside of the Golden Gate Bridge. Fortunately, actions have been taken to rectify some of these issues. San Mateo County contributed $200 million to extensions in the East Bay as a "buy-in", and in return between 1996 and 2003 service was extended down to Millbrae and SFO without the county having to officially join BARTD. Construction on a South Bay extension (also funded via a "buy-in" of federal grants and local sales taxes) began in 2012 and is expected to be completed in 2018, with the extension reaching out to the Berryessa neighborhood of northeast San Jose. Approval of a second phase of the extension that would continue to downtown San Jose and Santa Clara is currently awaiting additional funds. As for the North Bay...well, [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonoma-Marin_Area_Rail_Transit SMART]] is under development, and there's always the ferry if you just ''have'' to get to [[UsefulNotes/SanFrancisco The City]] without using the Golden Gate Bridge.

BART has its own branch of the police. BART Police's reputation has not been particularly positive, especially after the shooting of Oscar Grant in 2009 ([[RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgement the details and discussion of which are best left off of this page]]) and the aforementioned Charles Hill. In early 2014, for the first time in the system's history a BART police officer was killed in the line of duty when he was accidentally shot by a fellow officer while serving a search warrant.

Following a series of studies that indicated the decrepit, privately owned [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Key_System Key System]] of streetcars and buses would be insufficient for the Bay Area's growing postwar population, the Bay Area Rapid Transit District was founded in 1957. Work on the first test track segment between Walnut Creek and Concord began in June 1964 (with the opening ceremonies attended by [[LyndonJohnson LBJ]]), construction of the core system (including the Transbay Tube, miles of track under and through downtown San Francisco and several other cities, and a tunnel through the Berkeley Hills) took place over the next eight years, and the system was officially launched in 1972. BART initially opened up for service with one line between the [=MacArthur=] station in UsefulNotes/{{Oakland}} and Fremont Station in, well, Fremont. Since then, BART has expanded to cover more of the East Bay, as well as the San Francisco side of the SF Bay via the famous Transbay Tube (which opened in 1974 and runs under the Bay parallel to the SF-Oakland Bay Bridge).

BART's subways are some of the few in the United States to offer cellphone coverage, so feel free to check your Facebook, send text messages, or [[TVTropesWillRuinYourLife browse TV Tropes]] while riding. [[DamnYouMuscleMemory Do not expect this same amenity on other subway networks.]] Notoriously, in 2011, BART shut down cellphone service to hamper protests following the shooting of Charles Hill in 2011, which was not particularly well-received amongst passengers and especially Tropers/{{Anonymous}}.

The reasons for these omissions go back to BART's origins; Santa Clara County declined to join the Bay Area Rapid Transit District at its inception in 1957, instead spending money on a system of expressways. San Mateo County voted to withdraw in December 1961 because it didn't want to lose commerce to San Francisco and felt it was sufficiently served by Southern Pacific's existing Peninsula Commuter Service[[note]]ironically, the county had to scramble to pay for the trains anyway in the late 1970s when SP petitioned to discontinue the line due to mounting losses[[/note]]. Only a few months after that, Marin County was ''forced'' out due to doubts of its ability to pay for its service and engineering questions about attaching a rail line to the underside of the Golden Gate Bridge. Fortunately, actions have been taken to rectify some of these issues. San Mateo County contributed $200 million to extensions in the East Bay as a "buy-in", and in return between 1996 and 2003 service was extended down to Millbrae and SFO without the county having to officially join BARTD. Construction on a South Bay extension (also funded via a "buy-in" of federal grants and local sales taxes) began in 2012 and is expected to be completed in 2018, with the extension reaching out to the Berryessa neighborhood of northeast San Jose. Approval of a second phase of the extension that would continue to downtown San Jose and Santa Clara is currently awaiting additional funds. As for the North Bay...well, [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonoma-Marin_Area_Rail_Transit SMART]] is under development, and there's always the ferry if you just ''have'' to get to [[SanFrancisco The City]] without using the Golden Gate Bridge.

* Finally, and most infamously, as of 2014 the entire South Bay (including the Bay Area's largest city, San Jose) has no coverage. However, BART plans to resolve this by 2018, first extending the Fremont line to Warm Springs by 2015, and into the east part of San Jose by 2018 with new stops in Milpitas and Berryessa. These stops will also tie BART into the VTA light rail system.

* '''Richmond - Fremont''': The very first BART line. Only one of five to not touch San Francisco. A peoplemover completed in 2014 connects the Coliseum/Airport station directly to Oakland International Airport.

* '''Richmond - Fremont''': The very first BART line. Only one of five to not touch San Francisco. A recently completed peoplemover connects the Coliseum/Airport station directly to Oakland International Airport.

* Finally, and most infamously, as of 2014 the entire South Bay (including the Bay Area's largest city, San Jose) has no coverage.

The reasons for these omissions go back to BART's origins; Santa Clara County declined to join the Bay Area Rapid Transit District at its inception in 1957, instead spending money on a system of expressways. San Mateo County voted to withdraw in December 1961 because it didn't want to lose commerce to SF and felt it was sufficiently served by Southern Pacific's existing Peninsula Commuter Service[[note]]ironically, the county had to scramble to pay for the trains anyway in the late 1970s when SP petitioned to discontinue the line due to mounting losses[[/note]]. Only a few months after that, Marin County was ''forced'' out due to doubts of its ability to pay for its service and engineering questions about attaching a rail line to the underside of the Golden Gate Bridge. Fortunately, actions have been taken to rectify some of these issues. San Mateo County contributed $200 million to extensions in the East Bay as a "buy-in", and in return between 1996 and 2003 service was extended down to Millbrae and SFO without the county having to officially join BARTD. Construction on a South Bay extension (also funded via a "buy-in" of federal grants and local sales taxes) began in 2012 and is expected to be completed in 2018, with the extension reaching out to the Berryessa neighborhood of northeast San Jose. Approval of a second phase of the extension that would continue to downtown San Jose and Santa Clara is currently awaiting additional funds. As for the North Bay...well, [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonoma-Marin_Area_Rail_Transit SMART]] is under development, and there's always the ferry if you just ''have'' to get to [[SanFrancisco The City]] without using the Golden Gate Bridge.

* '''Dublin/Pleasanton - Daly City''': The most recent line, it follows the Fremont - Daly City line going from Daly City to Bay Fair station in San Leandro, then splits off to travel through Castro Valley and into Dublin and Pleasanton to the Dublin/Pleasanton station (also one station).

* The North Bay (in particular Marin County, just across the Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco) has no service and there are currently no plans to address this.

Following a series of studies that indicated the decrepit, privately owned [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Key_System Key System]] of streetcars and buses would be insufficient for the Bay Area's growing postwar population, the Bay Area Rapid Transit District was founded in 1957. Work on the first test track segment between Walnut Creek and Concord began in June 1964 (with the opening ceremonies attended by [[LyndonJohnson LBJ]]), construction of the core system (including the Transbay Tube, track construction under and through downtown San Francisco and several other cities, and a tunnel through the Berkeley Hills) took place over the next eight years, and the system was officially launched in 1972. BART initially opened up for service with one line between the [=MacArthur=] station in UsefulNotes/{{Oakland}} and Fremont Station in, well, Fremont. Since then, BART has expanded to cover more of the East Bay, as well as the San Francisco side of the SF Bay via the famous Transbay Tube (which opened in 1974 and runs under the Bay parallel to the SF-Oakland Bay Bridge).

Following a series of studies that indicated the decrepit, privately owned [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Key_System Key System]] of streetcars and buses would be insufficient for the Bay Area's growing postwar population, the Bay Area Rapid Transit District was founded in 1957. Work on the first test track segment between Walnut Creek and Concord began in June 1964 with a ceremony attended by [[LyndonJohnson LBJ]], construction of the core system (including the Transbay Tube, track construction under and through downtown San Francisco and several other cities, and a tunnel through the Berkeley Hills) took place over the next eight years, and the system was officially launched in 1972. BART initially opened up for service with one line between the [=MacArthur=] station in UsefulNotes/{{Oakland}} and Fremont Station in, well, Fremont. Since then, BART has expanded to cover more of the East Bay, as well as the San Francisco side of the SF Bay via the famous Transbay Tube (which opened in 1974 and runs under the Bay parallel to the SF-Oakland Bay Bridge).

The reasons for these omissions go back to BART's origins; Santa Clara County declined to join the Bay Area Rapid Transit District at its inception in 1957, instead spending money on a system of expressways. San Mateo County voted to withdraw in December 1961 because it didn't want to lose commerce to SF and felt it was sufficiently served by Southern Pacific's existing Peninsula Commuter Service[[note]]ironically, the county had to scramble to pay for the trains anyway in the late 1970s when SP petitioned to discontinue the line due to mounting losses[[/note]]. Only a few months after that, Marin County was forced out due to doubts of its ability to pay for its service and engineering questions about attaching a rail line to the underside of the Golden Gate Bridge. Fortunately, actions have been taken to rectify some of these issues. San Mateo County contributed $200 million to extensions in the East Bay as a "buy-in", and in return between 1996 and 2003 service was extended down to Millbrae and SFO without the county having to officially join BARTD. Construction on a South Bay extension (also funded via a "buy-in" of federal grants and local sales taxes) began in 2012 and is expected to be completed in 2018, with the extension reaching out to the Berryessa neighborhood of northeast San Jose. Approval of a second phase of the extension that would continue to downtown San Jose and Santa Clara is currently awaiting additional funds. As for the North Bay...well, [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonoma-Marin_Area_Rail_Transit SMART]] is under development, and there's always the ferry if you need to get to [[SanFrancisco The City]] without using the Golden Gate Bridge.

The reasons for these omissions go back to BART's origins; Santa Clara County declined to join the Bay Area Rapid Transit District at its inception in 1957, instead spending money on a system of expressways. San Mateo County voted to withdraw in December 1961 because it didn't want to lose commerce to SF and felt it was sufficiently served by Southern Pacific's existing Peninsula Commuter Service[[note]]ironically, the county had to scramble to pay for the trains anyway in the late 1970s when SP petitioned to discontinue the line due to mounting losses[[/note]]. Only a few months after that, Marin County was forced out due to doubts of its ability to pay for its service and engineering questions about attaching a rail line to the underside of the Golden Gate Bridge. Fortunately, actions have been taken to rectify some of these issues. San Mateo County contributed $200 million to extensions in the East Bay as a "buy-in", and in return between 1996 and 2003 service was extended down to Millbrae and SFO without the county having to officially join BARTD. Construction on a South Bay extension (also funded via a "buy-in" of federal grants and local sales taxes) began in 2012 and is expected to be completed in 2018, with the extension reaching out to the Berryessa neighborhood of northeast San Jose. Approval of a second phase of the extension that would continue to downtown San Jose and Santa Clara is currently awaiting additional funds. As for the North Bay...well, [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonoma-Marin_Area_Rail_Transit SMART]] is under development, and there's always the ferry if you need to get to [[SanFrancisco The City]].

The reasons for these omissions go back to BART's origins; Santa Clara County declined to join the Bay Area Rapid Transit District at its inception in 1957, instead spending money on a system of expressways. San Mateo County voted to withdraw in December 1961 because it didn't want to lose commerce to SF and felt it was sufficiently served by Southern Pacific's existing Peninsula Commuter Service[[note]]ironically, the county had to scramble to pay for the trains anyway in the late 1970s when SP petitioned to discontinue the line due to mounting losses[[/note]]. Only a few months after that, Marin County was forced out due to doubts of its ability to pay for its service and engineering questions about attaching a rail line to the underside of the Golden Gate Bridge. Fortunately, actions have been taken to rectify some of these issues. San Mateo County contributed $200 million to extensions in the East Bay as a "buy-in", and in return between 1996 and 2003 service was extended down to Millbrae and SFO without the county having to officially join BARTD. Construction on a South Bay extension (also funded via a "buy-in" of federal grants and local sales taxes) began in 2012 and is expected to be completed in 2018, with the extension reaching out to the Berryessa neighborhood of northeast San Jose. Approval of a second phase of the extension that would continue to downtown San Jose and Santa Clara is currently awaiting additional funds. As for the North Bay...well, [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonoma-Marin_Area_Rail_Transit SMART]] is under development, and to get to The City from there there's always the ferry.

Following a series of studies that indicated the decrepit, privately owned [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Key_System Key System]] of streetcars and buses would be insufficient for the Bay Area's growing postwar population, the Bay Area Rapid Transit District was founded in 1957. Work on the first test track segment between Walnut Creek and Concord began in June 1964 with a ceremony attended by [[LyndonJohnson LBJ]], construction of the core system (including the Transbay Tube, track construction under and through several cities, and a tunnel through the Berkeley Hills) took place over the next eight years, and the system was officially launched in 1972. BART initially opened up for service with one line between the [=MacArthur=] station in UsefulNotes/{{Oakland}} and Fremont Station in, well, Fremont. Since then, BART has expanded to cover more of the East Bay, as well as the San Francisco side of the SF Bay via the famous Transbay Tube (which opened in 1974 and runs under the Bay parallel to the SF-Oakland Bay Bridge).

Following a series of studies that indicated the decrepit, privately owned [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Key_System Key System]] of streetcars and buses would be insufficient for the Bay Area's growing population, the Bay Area Rapid Transit District was founded in 1957. Work on the first test track segment between Walnut Creek and Concord began in June 1964 with a ceremony attended by [[LyndonJohnson LBJ]], construction of the core system (including the Transbay Tube, track construction under and through several cities, and a tunnel through the Berkeley Hills) took place over the next eight years, and the system was officially launched in 1972. BART initially opened up for service with one line between the [=MacArthur=] station in UsefulNotes/{{Oakland}} and Fremont Station in, well, Fremont. Since then, BART has expanded to cover more of the East Bay, as well as the San Francisco side of the SF Bay via the famous Transbay Tube (which opened in 1974 and runs under the Bay parallel to the SF-Oakland Bay Bridge).

The reasons for these omissions go back to BART's origins; Santa Clara County declined to join the Bay Area Rapid Transit District from its inception in 1957, instead spending money on a system of expressways. San Mateo County voted to withdraw in December 1961 because it didn't want to lose commerce to SF and felt it was sufficiently served by Southern Pacific's existing Peninsula Commuter Service[[note]]ironically, the county had to scramble to pay for the trains anyway in the late 1970s when SP petitioned to discontinue the line due to mounting losses[[/note]]. Only a few months after that, Marin County was forced out due to doubts of its ability to pay for its service and engineering questions about attaching a rail line to the underside of the Golden Gate Bridge. Fortunately, actions have been taken to rectify some of these issues. San Mateo County contributed $200 million to extensions in the East Bay as a "buy-in", and in return between 1996 and 2003 service was extended down to Millbrae and SFO without the county having to officially join BARTD. Construction on a South Bay extension (also funded via a "buy-in" of federal grants and local sales taxes) began in 2012 and is expected to be completed in 2018, with the extension reaching out to the Berryessa neighborhood of northeast San Jose. Approval of a second phase of the extension that would continue to downtown San Jose and Santa Clara is currently awaiting additional funds. As for the North Bay...well, [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonoma-Marin_Area_Rail_Transit SMART]] is under development, and to get to The City from there there's always the ferry.

The reasons for these omissions go back to BART's origins; Santa Clara County declined to join the Bay Area Rapid Transit District from its inception in 1957 (preferring to spend money on a system of expressways). San Mateo County voted to withdraw in December 1961 because it didn't want to lose commerce to SF and felt it was sufficiently served by Southern Pacific's existing Peninsula Commuter Service[[note]]ironically, the county had to scramble to pay for the trains anyway in the late 1970s when SP petitioned to discontinue the line due to mounting losses[[/note]]. Only a few months after that, Marin County was forced out due to doubts of its ability to pay for its service and engineering questions about attaching a rail line to the underside of the Golden Gate Bridge. Fortunately, actions have been taken to rectify some of these issues. San Mateo County contributed $200 million to extensions in the East Bay as a "buy-in", and in return between 1996 and 2003 service was extended down to Millbrae and SFO without the county having to officially join BARTD. Construction on a South Bay extension (also funded via a "buy-in" of federal grants and local sales taxes) began in 2012 and is expected to be completed in 2018, with the extension reaching out to the Berryessa neighborhood of northeast San Jose. Approval of a second phase of the extension that would continue to downtown San Jose and Santa Clara is currently awaiting additional funds. As for the North Bay...well, [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonoma-Marin_Area_Rail_Transit SMART]] is under development, and to get to The City from there there's always the ferry.

These omissions go back to BART's origins; Santa Clara County declined to join the Bay Area Rapid Transit District from its inception in 1957 (preferring to spend money on a system of expressways). San Mateo County voted to withdraw in December 1961 because it didn't want to lose commerce to SF and felt it was sufficiently served by Southern Pacific's existing Peninsula Commuter Service[[note]]ironically, the county had to scramble to pay for the trains anyway in the late 1970s when SP petitioned to discontinue the line due to mounting losses[[/note]]. Only a few months after that, Marin County was forced out due to doubts of its ability to pay for its service and engineering questions about attaching a rail line to the underside of the Golden Gate Bridge. Fortunately, actions have been taken to rectify some of these issues. San Mateo County contributed $200 million to extensions in the East Bay as a "buy-in", and in return between 1996 and 2003 service was extended down to Millbrae and SFO without the county having to officially join BARTD. Construction on a South Bay extension (also funded via a "buy-in" of federal grants and local sales taxes) began in 2012 and is expected to be completed in 2018, with the extension reaching out to the Berryessa neighborhood of northeast San Jose. Approval of a second phase of the extension that would continue to downtown San Jose and Santa Clara is currently awaiting additional funds. As for the North Bay...well, [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonoma-Marin_Area_Rail_Transit SMART]] is under development, and to get to The City from there there's always the ferry.