BART wants new tracks too, and will send someone in person to tell you all about it

RICHMOND, CA - OCTOBER 18: Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) trains sit idle at a BART maintenance facility on the first day of the BART strike on October 18, 2013 in Richmond, California. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) less RICHMOND, CA - OCTOBER 18: Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) trains sit idle at a BART maintenance facility on the first day of the BART strike on October 18, 2013 in Richmond, California. (Photo by Justin ... more Photo: Justin Sullivan, Getty Images Photo: Justin Sullivan, Getty Images Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close BART wants new tracks too, and will send someone in person to tell you all about it 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

BART has heard your complaints. BART feels for you. BART seems sad too.

After "44 years of service and hundreds of millions of trips," the transit system is aiming to put a new general obligation bond on the ballot to raise $3.5 billion in funding to "repair and replace critical safety infrastructure" and "expand opportunities to safely access stations."

BART's new plan comes via an eight page PDF brochure for its "Better BART" public outreach program, which outlines the various ways the organization needs to update and upgrade the service's various shortcomings. The news comes after months of delays, mystery "glitches," and news of fake cameras plagued BART's reputation.

To succeed in getting funding, the company needs your input and participation (and your votes, but it can't say that). BART will even send someone to tell you and a bunch of your friends all about its shiny new plan if you ask nicely enough, because communication is at the top of the to-do list.

One of the organization's more recent features is a "personal presentation" option, wherein "Better BART" officials "discuss how we come up with the lifespan of our tens of thousands of infrastructure assets, how we would protect their investment if they chose, and answer questions about BART."

In other words, if you've got burning questions about BART, they'll be ready to answer them, because they want new tracks just as badly as we do.

But BART is limited in how much it can do in terms of passing the bond. The organization is quick to note that as a public agency, it cannot ask people to vote for its own measure, but it can give riders facts about its plan, and "demonstrate [its] need."

"BART knows best about how we need to go about fixing what needs fixing here, but we wanted to start a conversation with people so they understood our needs clearly," BART Communications officer Taylor Huckaby told SFGATE. "We need input in order to communicate effectively."