BART announces additional cable and rail replacement
Written by David C. Lester, Editor-in-Chief
A portion of BART’s Yellow Line was closed due to an issue with the track.
BART
BART has announced additional work and maintenance on the railroad.
Critical cable replacement work in Lafayette (single tracking Sunday 9/19)
BART is replacing electrical lines that are critical for maintaining train service in that part of the system. BART has already been replacing traction power cables at different locations across the system. BART is reaching out to neighbors about potential construction impacts. The work will require that service be reduced to one track in Lafayette on several weekend days. The next work day for this project that will require single tracking is Sunday, September 19. Riders in the area should expect delays of 10-15 minutes.
This critical infrastructure provides power for our trains from the high voltage switching substation and supports redundancy for this portion of the BART system. This equipment is essential for ensuring reliable train service. This 50-year-old electrical infrastructure (part of the legacy system) has exceeded the end of its design life and must be replaced. Loss of power in this section of track without any backup would have major impact on train operations for the entire BART system.
In order to perform this critical job, BART crews will also be working nights to complete the work in this section of trackway. Neighbors can expect construction activities under our aerial trackway with the operation of construction equipment.
Service reduced to single track on two Sundays for rail replacement work from Walnut Creek to Pleasant Hill (next workday 10/10)
BART workers will be replacing 16,000 feet of rail in Contra Costa County as part of the on-going effort to rebuild the backbone of BART and replace aging equipment that has outlived its design life. In many cases the rail being replaced has been carrying dozens of BART trains every day for several decades.
This work will require that service between Walnut Creek and Pleasant Hill be reduced to one track on the following Sundays to ensure a safe work environment for the construction team:
*October 10
Riders in the area on workdays should anticipate delays of up to 15-20 minutes. Contra Costa County riders traveling westbound and looking to avoid the delay entirely should go directly to the Lafayette Station or even the West Oakland Station which provides more frequent train service into San Francisco.
This rail replacement work is made possible by Measure RR, which was approved by BART District voters in 2016 and provides $3.5 billion to rebuild the backbone of the system.
