More people in the Bay Area are choosing to include biking as part of their commute. BART offers many options for cyclists to use bikes in and around BART, such as bike racks, free secure parking at three stations and bike lockers at many stations -- including approximately 200 new electronic lockers. Details are included below and on each station page.
If you are taking your bike on BART please be aware of BART's bicycle rules and schedules. Bikes are allowed on most trains, except those highlighted on the schedule during peak commute times, or at any time on crowded cars. Folding bikes are allowed at any time. Bicyclists must yield to all other passengers and yield priority seating to seniors and persons with disabilities.
Bike Lockers
Two types of lockers are available to store bicycles, mopeds or wheelchairs: keyed lockers and electronic lockers.
Keyed lockers are for single-use and require a rental agreement. Note that some stations have wait lists. Please contact (510) 464-7133 for locker availability. Download the application/rental agreement (.pdf).
Electronic lockers are for shared use and are available on a first-come, first-served basis. They provide secure bike parking and increased bicycle storage capacity at BART stations. In partnership with various funding agencies, BART recently completed the first phase of installation of its Electronic Bicycle Locker program, which includes approximately 200 lockers at various BART stations in the district.
Electronic lockers at Dublin/Pleasanton (12), North Berkeley (48), Rockridge (32) and San Leandro (20) BART stations were made possible by grants from the Alameda County Transportation Improvement Authority’s Bike/Ped Discretionary Fund and the Alameda County Congestion Management Agency through the cities of Dublin, Berkeley and San Leandro.
Electronic lockers at Ashby (12), Lake Merritt (32), MacArthur (40), Rockridge (32), and West Oakland (6) BART stations were made possible by grants from the Bay Area Air Quality Management District’s Transportation Fund for Clean Air. Twenty (20) more electronic lockers at MacArthur BART Station were made possible by grants from the Metropolitan Transportation Commission’s Safe Routes To Transit program.
In addition to these lockers, there are electronic lockers at Pleasant Hill (24), which were made possible by CalTrans, 511 Contra Costa, Contra Costa Centre and Contra Costa County. Also, the City of El Cerrito provides 48 electronic lockers at the El Cerrito Plaza Station.
How electronic bicycle lockers work
The electronic bicycle lockers provide on-demand bike parking. You can purchase a smart card online at http://www.bikelink.org/ or at a convenient vendor location. Ride up to an available locker and insert your smart card into the card slot. Follow on-screen directions to put time on the meter. The cost, at 3-cents an hour, is automatically deducted from your smart card. Park your bike inside, close the door, and your bike remains secure. When you return to retrieve your bike, just insert your smart card into the slot to open the door. Unused time and value are automatically refunded back to the card. To learn more about how to use electronic bicycle lockers, go to www.bikelink.org/help/how_it_works. For answers to Frequently Asked Questions, go to www.bikelink.org/help/faq. We understand that many of our customers would like to reserve an electronic locker in advance. A reservation system is currently in Beta testing stage at the Pleasant Hill BART station, and will be ending in December 2008. Results from this test will be used to determine if a reservation system is possible for BART.
More electronic bicycle lockers coming soon
The second phase of BART's electronic locker program will provide electronic lockers at the following stations in 2009: Glen Park, Balboa Park, Ashby, Bay Fair, Coliseum, Dublin/Pleasanton, Fruitvale, Hayward, San Leandro, West Oakland, Fremont, El Cerrito Del Norte, Concord, Lafayette, Orinda and Union City.
FREE Secure Bike Parking at Three BART Stations
Fruitvale BART Station
The Fruitvale bike parking center is in Fruitvale Village, adjacent to the Fruitvale BART station in Oakland. It's the second largest bike station in the nation and features free, secure bike storage and a full-service bike repair shop.
Operated by local retailer Alameda Bicycle, the Fruitvale bike parking facility is near the northeast station exit by the Cesar Chavez Plaza entrance of Fruitvale Village. Free attendant parking is available from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. weekdays (closed weekends and holidays). The bike station features more than 200 spaces and provides customers with repair services and bicycle retail including helmets, lights, locks and other accessories. More information is available on the Fruitvale bike center website.
Created in partnership with the City of Oakland and the Fruitvale Development Corporation, funding for this project was provided by the Bay Area Quality Management District Transportation Fund for Clean Air, Caltrans Bicycle Transportation Account and the Alameda County Congestion Management Agency.
Downtown Berkeley BART Station
Located on the south end of the concourse level, attendants will store your bike in a secure area while you work, play or shop on BART. Hours are: weekdays 7 am to 9 pm (closed weekends and holidays). For more information call the Bike Station at (510) 548-7433.
Embarcadero BART Station
Located on the concourse level of the Embarcadero BART station in downtown San Francisco directly below Market Street near the Davis Street entrance, this bike parking center provides attended parking in the non-paid area across from the platform-to-concourse elevator.
The station is attended during the morning and evening weekday rush hours (7:30am- 9:30am and 3pm- 7pm). Parking and pick-up of bicycles during the staffed hours is free. Members can use their tag to access the Bike Station Weekdays 4am-Midnight, Saturday 6 am-Midnight and Sundays 8am-Midnight.
The Embarcadero Bike Station is funded in partnership with BART by the Transportation Fund For Clean Air from the Bay Area Air Quality District. It is operated by Bikestation®, a non-profit organization that seeks to improve the quality of life in urban communities through the operation and development of bike-transit centers and related infrastructure. By using a combination of attended parking and self-serve parking, this bike facility provides more hours of bicycle parking. For additional information, please call (415) 834-1049.
BART Bicycle Access and Parking Plan
As a component of the Station Access Plans, the BART Bicycle Access and Parking Plan provides BART with the strategies necessary to enhance the attractiveness of the bicycle as an access mode and thereby increase the bicycle mode share. Download the BART Bicycle Access and Parking Plan (1 Mb .pdf)
Photo credit: Photos of bikes on this page by Thomas Hawk.
