BART Begins Renovation of Concord Station

EAST BAY, CA -- Bay Area Rapid Transit on Monday began work on a $3.2 million renovation of its station in Concord.

BART is rebuilding the station's plaza, adding a walkway that connects with Grant Street leading to downtown, agency and city officials said at the dedication ceremony. A raised pedestrian crosswalk, an additional bike lane and improved signage are also part of the redo.

"This will redirect people toward downtown and Todos Santos Plaza," the square that hosts weekly farmer's markets, a summer concert series and other events, Concord City Councilman Ron Leone said.

About 20 Concord city officials, BART representatives and a few construction workers in hard hats and fluorescent vests attended the ceremony. The officials who addressed the crowd spoke over the sound of
jackhammers from the construction.

The project will mostly be paid for by revenue from Measure J, which voters passed in 2004 to continue an existing Contra Costa County half-cent transportation sales tax used to pay for transportation programs.

The project's expected to be completed in summer 2018.

"It's important that we orient our stations toward the parts of cities where there is activity," BART Director Joel Keller said.

"People will get off BART and walk to restaurants and concerts," said California Assemblyman Tim Grayson, D-Concord, a former mayor of the city.

BART is building the walkway and the city will pay for improvements to Grant Street, Mayor Laura Hoffmeister said. She said the city is seeking grant funding and did not have a cost estimate for the
improvements yet.

Sixty parking spaces at the station have been moved across the street to accommodate the construction, according to BART spokesman Taylor Huckaby. The station will lose 12 parking spaces to the plaza when it is
finished.

Two BART passengers at the station were unimpressed with the project.

"They (BART) can't afford to clean the bathrooms. They can't afford to clean the cars," said David Swift, who said he has lived near BART for 22 years and taken BART for 19 years.

"Who in their right minds put people who can't keep the trains running in charge?" Swift said. "They don't seem to be accountable. If their salaries were tied to train performance and on-time operation, maybe you
would see fewer plazas and more trains on time."

Andrew Fridman of San Francisco takes the train to Concord frequently. He called the $3.2 million for the plaza "outrageous," adding that the money should go to more trains.

Asked about similar passenger reactions during the ceremony, Keller admitted that the system isn't as reliable as it could be. However, he said, something that should help is that last November, voters approved Measure RR, which will raise $3.5 billion in general obligation bond funds that BART has said it will use to repair deteriorating tracks, waterproof tunnels and protect against earthquakes.

"As we identify the top priorities for Measure RR funds," money will go to such things as improving the BART tracks, and that will improve service, he said.

Bay City News contributed to this report/Image via juliardi/Getty Images