BART upgrading 47-year-old equipment in big step toward trains every 2 minutes

Commuters ride in one of the BART Fleet of the Future cars on Sept. 24, 2019. Commuters ride in one of the BART Fleet of the Future cars on Sept. 24, 2019. Photo: Trish Gervasio Photo: Trish Gervasio Image 1 of / 24 Caption Close BART upgrading 47-year-old equipment in big step toward trains every 2 minutes 1 / 24 Back to Gallery

The BART Board of Directors voted Thursday to award a $798 million contract to Hitachi Rail STS USA, Inc. to upgrade its 47-year-old train control system, an expensive but crucial step in increasing train frequency and reducing crowding.

The system overhaul will allow trains to travel closer together safely.

"[It] will allow us to put 30 trains an hour into a space that we now put 24 trains an hour," said Fred Edwards, manager of the operations control center, in an informational video. "The same space where we're looking at 3,000 or 4,000 feet of separation, we will be down to hundreds of feet of separation in a much, much safer system."

The new technology is expected to reduce minimum headway (the amount of time between trains) to two minutes, ultimately increasing the system's carrying capacity.

For a more detailed explanation of the switch from a fixed-block train control system to a communications based system, check out this informational video BART produced:

About half of the funding for the project comes from Measure RR, a $3.5 billion bond Bay Area voters passed in 2016 to improve BART infrastructure. BART is also receiving federal funding for the project.

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“This will be a pivotal project in BART’s history,” BART General Manager Bob Powers said in a press release. “We will now be able to eliminate aged and obsolete equipment. Modernizing our train control system will help us to support future ridership in the busiest sections of our system.”

Alix Martichoux is an SFGATE digital editor. Read her latest stories and send her news tips at alix.martichoux@sfgate.com.