By Transit California Staff
Alameda-Contra Costa Transit District: Honoring the memory of Board Director H.E. Christian Peeples
It is with profound sadness that the Alameda-Contra Costa Transit District (AC Transit) Board of Directors announces the passing of Director H.E. Christian Peeples. Lovingly known as "Chris," Director Peeples leaves a legacy of service to the people of the East Bay, as one of the longest-serving board members in our transit district's 65-year history.
Director Peeples joined the Board in 1997 as an At-large Director, beginning a remarkable 28-year journey marked by dedication and vision. He was more than an elected leader – he was a true pioneer in environmental stewardship, passionately driving the adoption and advancement of AC Transit’s zero emission bus technologies. His commitment ran so deep that he rolled up his sleeves alongside mechanical staff to learn the complexities of hydrogen and fuel-cell technologies. This practical experience, combined with his passion for sustainable transit, earned him the reputation of a trusted expert. Transit agencies from around the world frequently sought his guidance and insights as they navigated the complex transition from conventional fleets to cutting-edge hydrogen fuel cell buses.
Beyond his groundbreaking work in sustainability, Director Peeples was a heartfelt champion for the community. He stood shoulder to shoulder with grassroots groups like AC Bus Riders Union, Alliance for AC Transit, and others, always ensuring that the voices of everyday riders were heard and valued. His active role in committees like the General Manager’s Access Committee and various interagency groups showed his genuine commitment to inclusion and meaningful change. Even as a ham radio enthusiast, he passionately worked to keep this vital technology alive, ensuring the public could remain connected during emergency events when all other systems may fail.
"Chris was instrumental in encouraging me to step into public service, and in his refreshingly unconventional spirit, what I like to call a bold nonconformist approach to problem-solving, left a lasting mark on all of us. His deep institutional knowledge as an attorney and policymaker challenged the status quo and sparked groundbreaking innovations at AC Transit, most recently the debut of Zero Emission Bus University. Chris cared deeply, not just for our riders and the communities he served, but also for our employees, tirelessly advocating for their well-being and the advancement of our pension system. We have not only lost a treasured Board colleague, but our entire region has lost a compassionate public servant who devoted nearly 30 years to uplifting the lives of low-income communities, people of color, and immigrants – elevating the marginalized voices he was determined to make heard," said Board President Diane Shaw.
As we remember Director Peeples, we honor not just his accomplishments, but the tenacity, care, and spirit he brought to every public meeting and decision. His legacy is one that will continue to guide and inspire the East Bay.
Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s Care-Based Approach, Partnerships with County/City Agencies, Result in Nearly 40 Percent Decrease of People Experiencing Homelessness on System
Metro Connected 2,709 People to Permanent or Interim Housing During FY25
The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) announced the 2025 annual point-in-time count of people experiencing homelessness on the transit system fell significantly, with a 37% to 39% decrease from the previous year. This year’s count estimates 631 to 684 unhoused individuals on Metro’s system, compared to 1,041 to 1,092 in 2024.
By comparison, homelessness decreased by 4% across Los Angeles County and 3.4% within the City of Los Angeles, according to the Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count.
“Providing assistance for people experiencing homelessness is an important part of building a world-class transit system for all Los Angeles residents,” said Metro Board Chair and Whittier City Council Member Fernando Dutra. “While there is still much more work to do, this significant reduction shows the positive impact of our efforts to make Metro safer, cleaner, and more welcoming—while treating all people with the dignity and respect they deserve.”
Metro’s Care-Based Outreach Model Driving Results
Metro’s care-based approach focuses on connecting unhoused riders to supportive services and housing, in collaboration with the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services (DHS) and a network of homeless service providers. Through its HOME (Homeless Outreach and Mobile Engagement) program, Metro deploys multidisciplinary teams across the bus and rail system, offering resources in real time to individuals in need. Metro partners with six community-based homeless services providers—PATH, Christ Centered Ministries, HOPICS, LA Family Housing, Union Station Homeless Services and Helpline Youth Counseling to provide critical services and housing.
“I am proud that Metro’s care-based approach is delivering real results, not only improving the lives of thousands of unhoused individuals but also enhancing the experience for our riders,” said Metro CEO Stephanie Wiggins. “Fewer people are using the Metro system as shelter, and more are being connected to housing and services. That’s a win for everyone who depends on public transit.”
In fiscal year 2025, Metro’s outreach teams connected 2,709 people to interim or permanent housing, exceeding the agency’s goal of housing 1,800 individuals by more than 150%.
County Partnership Key to Success
Metro’s partnership with the County of Los Angeles, particularly with DHS, has been critical to ensuring people experiencing homelessness receive care and support. The County provides Metro with access to shelter beds around the clock, which allows outreach workers to offer safe options to unhoused individuals even during late-night hours when many buses and trains go out of service.
“It’s encouraging to see that—for the second year in a row—our annual count reflects a decrease in homelessness across Los Angeles County,” said Chair of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors and Metro Board Second Vice Chair Kathryn Barger. “This progress shows that when the County and Metro work together to deliver housing, health care, and outreach, we can make a real difference. Still, more than 72,000 individuals remain unhoused, and many seek refuge on and around our transit system. That reality keeps us focused on the work ahead. I remain committed—along with my Metro Board colleagues—to ensuring our system is safe for everyone. Our efforts are paying off, as shown by ongoing reductions in crime across Metro. We will continue pursuing compassionate, coordinated strategies that improve transit environments while connecting people to lasting solutions.”
San Diego MTS Security Honored by Department of Homeland Security with Gold Award
The San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (MTS) Security Department has received the highest level of recognition, the Gold Standard Award, from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Transportation Security Administration (TSA) for its work maintaining a safe and secure transit system. MTS is only one of two transit agencies nationwide to receive this recognition in 2024.
The Gold Standard Award is the highest level of recognition TSA can give to a transit agency for achieving top scores. TSA commended the agency for achieving a strong security program, as evidenced by the high scores the transit agency received on the most recent Baseline Assessment for Security Enhancement (BASE).
TSA San Diego Field Office Lead Inspector Chris Hatfield stated, “San Diego MTS has a long history of world-class innovation in security and has maintained one of the highest levels of vigilance, preparedness and regional cooperation with other agencies that I’ve ever seen. We’re proud to recognize MTS as an industry leader, and are thankful for their continued partnership.”
MTS operates 92 bus routes and four Trolley lines in 10 cities and unincorporated areas of San Diego. The agency served approximately 80.1 million passengers in FY 2025 through its light rail and bus operations. It has the second fastest growing transit ridership in the United States since the COVID pandemic among the nation’s top 25 transit agencies.
“Safety and security of passengers and employees has always been the top priority at MTS,” said Sharon Cooney, MTS Chief Executive Officer. “Receiving the Gold Standard Award from TSA really validates all we’ve done recently to develop a comprehensive security program. It’s an honor to receive this prestigious recognition from TSA, and I am proud of all the MTS employees who contributed to this accomplishment.”
TSA developed BASE to support its strategic goals of increasing domain awareness, enhancing prevention and protection capabilities, and furthering response preparedness of transit system nationwide. BASE is a comprehensive review of MTS’s security program, focusing on 17 categories identified by the transit community as fundamental for a sound transit security program. MTS attained high scores across all categories.
The 17 categories cover a range of areas including security program management and accountability, security and emergency response training, drills and exercises, public awareness, protective measures for the National Terrorism Advisory System threat levels, physical and cyber security strategies, personnel security and information sharing and security.
MTS has made significant investments into its security program in recent years. This includes:
Bay Area Rapid Transit: Bay Area transit's latest Big Sync improves transfers, saving riders up to 20 minutes per trip
Bay Area transit agencies have been syncing schedules in a whole new way to make riding transit even faster. Transit agencies from across the region are updating their schedules at the same time in mid-August to significantly improve transfer reliability and timing. With these changes, transit riders who use more than one system will see a variety of improvements across the Bay Area this month, saving some riders as much as 20 minutes on their trips.
This is the third iteration of a coordinated Big Sync in the Bay Area. Agencies meet several months in advance of each schedule change to share planned changes and to look for opportunities to improve transfers.
Four transfer hubs get schedule overhauls
After a thorough analysis of potential high-impact improvements benefiting the greatest number of riders, four specific locations where riders transfer from one system to another were prioritized for changes to maximize efficiency:
Dublin/Pleasanton BART
Daly City BART
Palo Alto Caltrain
Concord BART
These transfer hubs involved the coordination of BART, Muni, SamTrans, Caltrain, VTA, Dumbarton Express, Stanford Marguerite, Tri Delta Transit, County Connection, StanRTA, and LAVTA’s Wheels.
In all, 18 bus routes at the four hub locations were tweaked to improve transfer connections with BART, Caltrain, and with each other. For these 18 routes, this effort achieves a 33% increase in weekday ideal transfers, most commonly between 5-10 minutes, and a 47% increase in weekend ideal transfers.
When a transfer window is too short, riders must sprint to make their connection, or worse, they just miss it and have a long wait. This effort achieves a 23% decrease in weekday transfers that are too short and a 36% decrease in weekday transfers that are too long.
Advancing schedule change alignment is a key priority for Bay Area transit general managers, who meet on a weekly basis to make transit more rider-focused and efficient.
“The Big Sync was born from the idea that while we are separate agencies by name, we all work as one to serve the region,” said BART General Manager Bob Powers, who leads a Monday morning call with all operators with a focus on coordination and transformational improvements. “Bay Area transit agencies are maximizing our limited resources by working collaboratively to speed up travel times across the region and make it easier to ride the bus, train, or ferry.”
Golden Empire Transit Continues FREE Rides for Students for 2025-2026 School Year
Golden Empire Transit District (GET) is pleased to announce the continuation of its FREE Rides for Students program for the 2025-2026 school year. This program is designed to provide students with easy access to transportation on GET Fixed Route Buses and On-Demand Paratransit services, ensuring that students have a reliable and cost-free option to get to school and other activities.
Key Program Details:
“By providing free rides, we hope to remove transportation barriers, allowing students to focus on their education and extracurricular activities,” said Chris James, CEO at Golden Empire Transit District.
Alameda-Contra Costa Transit District has updated 104 bus lines to improve schedules, frequency, and reliability
Called Realign, it’s an update to 84% of bus lines to improve schedules, frequency, and reliability
The Alameda-Contra Costa Transit District (AC Transit), after two years of gathering rider feedback, listening to community voices, and upholding a strong commitment to equity, is proud to introduce the all-new Realign bus network, which began on Sunday, August 10. Realign right-sizes our bus network to directly respond to hybrid and remote work patterns, shifting ridership, and resulting fiscal challenges, while remaining flexible to meet the evolving travel needs of East Bay riders.
With ridership stabilizing at 85% of pre-pandemic levels, AC Transit is focused on preserving that progress while laying the groundwork to restore 100% of its service. The first step in this forward-looking plan is Realign, a comprehensive overhaul of the 130 existing bus lines, conducted in the face of a historic $41.5 million budget shortfall.
This ambitious effort has produced a more efficient network of 123 bus lines, aimed at enhancing schedules, increasing frequency, and improving overall reliability. Among these, 104 lines have been updated, newly created, or redesigned, accounting for 84% of the bus lines in operation.
Realign: New Lines
The Realign network demonstrates AC Transit’s commitment to using limited resources wisely while continuing to provide our tradition of safe and reliable transit for the communities we have served for 65 years. As a result, Realign is introducing 15 new local and supplementary lines.
These new bus lines are designed to enhance connections to schools, shopping areas, and neighborhoods, along with coordinated scheduling to improve transfers with East Bay transit partners.
While these all-new bus lines may not serve as exact one-to-one replacements for discontinued bus lines (listed in detail below) several offer expanded coverages through new destinations, improving overall connectivity. On some routes, single-ride lines are discontinued. However, new bus lines offer similar connections with convenient transfer points, ensuring continued access to key destinations.
Realign: Updated Bus Stops Across the Network
Major updates are also underway at more than 1,500 bus stops. Riders will begin to see new bus stop flags and decals, with clearly marked bags identifying whether the stop serves new or existing lines. Zip-tied pole signs will provide detailed, stop-specific information to guide riders through the Realign transition.
Given the number of bus stops across our extensive service areas, installation will continue even after the August 10 launch of the Realign bus lines. We appreciate the patience of our riders as we work to complete this process as quickly and thoroughly as possible.
Riders using the AC Transit Official App or popular third-party apps will receive line-specific Service Alerts. These alerts will also appear on AC Transit RealTime, helping riders stay informed wherever they travel.
Realign: Discontinued Lines
While discontinuing service is never an easy decision, AC Transit conducted a detailed analysis of travel patterns, community needs, rider feedback, and equity to ensure our limited resources are used effectively. As a result, the Realign network strategically reallocated Bus Operators and buses to routes with high demand, enhancing service reliability and better meeting the needs of riders’ post-pandemic.
Bus lines with consistently low ridership, outdated routing, or prolonged suspension since the COVID-19 pandemic were identified for discontinuation.
For a full preview of the Realign bus network, go to actransit.org/realign/service-changes. Realign updates are also available by calling Customer Service at (510) 891-4777 and selecting option 2.
BART: Tap and Ride: A new way to pay for BART with bank cards, Apple Pay and Google Pay
A new day for riders arrived Wednesday, August 20, as BART became the Bay Area’s first Tap and Ride system. Tap and Ride provides riders the ability to pay adult fares at BART fare gates using physical contactless credit or debit cards or mobile payment methods such as Apple Pay and Google Pay.
With Tap and Ride, riders no longer need to use a Clipper card to ride BART. This will be an immense timesaver for riders because zero registration or setup process is required, and riders will no longer need to add fare. Just tap and ride.
If you want to continue using a Clipper card, take it out of your wallet or purse when you pay. If you want to continue using Clipper on your Apple Wallet, make sure Express Mode is turned on for Clipper card. Android devices will automatically present the digital Clipper card if the user has one in Google Wallet.
What you need to know about Tap and Ride:
Cards accepted for Tap and Ride on BART include Visa, Mastercard, American Express, and Discover Network.
Physical bank cards must be contactless enabled, with the contactless symbol on either the front or back of the card. You can also use mobile payment methods such as Apple Pay and Google Pay.
There is no registration or setup process required to begin using Tap and Ride.
Each rider must pay with their own card or mobile device. If family members have the same credit card number but they are on different cards and devices, they will be able to use it.
Riders must use the same card or device to tap in and tap out.
BART Station Agents can help “read” which contactless bank card you used to tap in or confirm tapping activity.
Riders will be charged full adult fares. Those with eligibility-based discounts, such as Clipper START or youth or senior discounts, must continue using their physical or digital Clipper card. Allowing discount card holders to join Tap and Ride is on the roadmap, but it is not yet available.
Transfer with a Clipper card. Transfer discounts will not be available with Tap and Ride until it’s rolled out to the region’s other transit agencies.
Avoid card clash. This happens when a Clipper reader detects more than one card at a time, which can result in card reader errors or having the wrong card charged.
To avoid this, remove physical cards from your wallet or purse before tapping just like you would do when making a purchase at retailers.
Riders using Apple Pay should enable Express Mode for their credit or debit card by accessing the Wallet. (see below for instructions)
Android devices will automatically present the digital Clipper card. Override this feature and pay with Tap and Ride by navigating to the bank card before tapping at the fare gates. (see below for instructions)
Tape and Ride users will have a 30-minute grace period to avoid the BART excursion fare if they change their mind after entering a station and opt not to ride BART. Clipper users will continue to need to see an agent before exiting if they change their mind about riding BART to avoid the excursion fare or they need to contact Clipper Customer Services to request an excursion fare refund if they didn’t ride BART. The excursion fare grace period will be available to Clipper users once the Next Generation of Clipper is rolled out at a yet to be determined later date.
Questions or issues? Call Clipper Customer Service Center at 877-878-8883 for assistance or visit clippercard.com/contactless-payments.