AC Transit
AC Transit is the main bus transit operator in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, California. AC Transit is the third largest bus operator in California, serving the western portions of Alameda and Contra Costa counties, with a fleet of over 600 buses operating 130 routes. The agency was founded in 1960 as the successor of the bankrupt Key System.
AC Transit's primary services are its local bus routes, which serve the entire East Bay region from Richmond to Milpitas; "Transbay" regional routes, most of which operate between the East Bay and San Francisco via the Bay Bridge; and the Tempo bus rapid transit line from Oakland to San Leandro.
AC Transit has its headquarters in Oakland, with four bus operations facilities throughout the East Bay and a control center in Emeryville. The agency is officially known as the Alameda-Contra Costa Transit District, and it is structured as a special district governed by an elected seven-member board of directors. In, AC Transit had a ridership of, or about per weekday in.
Services
AC Transit operates four main brands of bus services: local, Transbay, Tempo, and Rapid. The agency also operates paratransit services for customers with disabilities and special school services to middle and high schools.Local services operate throughout the agency's entire service area, which consists of much of the East Bay region, extending north to Richmond and south to Milpitas in Santa Clara County. All local lines connect to regional transit services, with most lines serving BART stations.
Transbay lines operate across the San Francisco Bay, providing regional service from the East Bay to the San Francisco Peninsula. Most lines operate from the East Bay to the Salesforce Transit Center in San Francisco, with frequent service during weekday commute hours. Select lines operate all day, 7 days per week. Transbay service is the successor to regional rail lines operated by the Key System, which operated direct streetcar service from the East Bay to the former Transbay Terminal via rail infrastructure on the Bay Bridge.
Tempo is a limited-stop bus service on International Boulevard, with elements of bus rapid transit. Tempo buses operate in dedicated lanes on part of the route, serving bus stops located in the median of the street, and using uniquely-branded buses with doors on both sides. Tempo is listed in AC Transit schedules as route 1T, and operates 24/7 from the Uptown Transit Center at 19th St/Oakland BART station to San Leandro BART station.
Rapid is AC Transit's brand for its limited-stop bus services, which was introduced in 2003 with line 72R on San Pablo Avenue. AC Transit's second Rapid service, line 1R on International Boulevard, was discontinued in 2016 and fully replaced by Tempo bus rapid transit service in 2020., AC Transit has proposed Rapid services for the Telegraph Avenue and Grand Avenue corridors.
East Bay Paratransit is a joint venture of AC Transit and BART to provide paratransit service in the East Bay, in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act. East Bay Paratransit serves customers who cannot use regular bus or train service due to a disability. Paratransit service is operated by Transdev.
AC Transit operates supplemental school services to middle and high schools within its service area. Some school service is provided by regular local routes with minor modifications, and other schools are served by dedicated routes numbered in the 600s. Unlike traditional school bus services provided by school districts, AC Transit supplemental school services are open to the public with the payment of regular fares, and are operated with standard transit buses. School services are funded by school districts, which has at times caused conflict between the transit agency and the school districts over the cost and schedules of the services.
Regional connections
AC Transit forms part of the regional public transit network in the San Francisco Bay Area, and accepts the regional Clipper card for fare payment. AC Transit buses serve 23 BART stations in the agency's East Bay service area, and connect to multiple local transit operators including MUNI, Golden Gate Transit, and VTA. AC Transit also connects to regional and national transportation networks, with services to Oakland San Francisco Bay Airport and connections to Amtrak and San Francisco Bay Ferry services.AC Transit operates 24/7 service on 7 key routes in the regional All Nighter network, with a central hub in downtown Oakland.
AC Transit also operates multiple lines of the regional BART Early Bird Express network, which provides supplemental early-morning commuter service along BART lines in the 4:00 AM hour, before BART trains begin operating in the 5:00 hour. The BART Early Bird Express service was introduced in 2019 to replace cancelled early-morning BART trains, which were eliminated to provide time for additional maintenance to the Transbay Tube.
Routes
, AC Transit operates 130 routes, which includes 60 local and Rapid lines, 15 Transbay lines, 6 All Nighter routes, and 45 special school routes.Fares
The standard fare for AC Transit local services is $2.75 with cash, and $2.25 with the agency's mobile app or the Clipper card. Transbay services have a higher fare of $6. Daily, weekly, and monthly passes are available for both local and Transbay services, and reduced fares are available for children, seniors, and individuals with disabilities.AC Transit offers fare capping in addition to its daily, weekly, and monthly passes, allowing customers to earn a pass by paying single fares. Clipper card users are eligible for a daily fare cap of $5 on local services, and users of the AC Transit mobile app can also earn weekly and monthly passes.
History
Voters created the Alameda-Contra Costa Transit District in 1956 and subsequently approved a $16.5 million bond issue in 1959 enabling the District to buy out the failing privately owned Key System Transit Lines. In October 1960, AC Transit's service began. The new District built up the bus fleet with 250 new buses, extended service into new neighborhoods, created an intercity express bus network, and increased Bay Bridge bus service.Numerous AC Transit routes were modified in 1972–73 to serve the new BART system. AC Transit began operating express service connecting BART terminals with outer suburban points under contract to BART on December 2, 1974. With BART operating, suburban municipalities began contracting with AC Transit to operate local bus service. Service began in Fremont on November 12, 1974; in Newark on December 16, 1974; in Concord on September 8, 1975; in Pleasant Hill on December 8, 1975; in Moraga and Orinda on September 13, 1976; and in Antioch and Pittsburg on June 5, 1977. The lines in central Contra Costa County were transferred to the new Central Contra Costa Transit Authority in June 1982. Tri-Delta Transit switched to a different operator in 1984.
In 2003, the District introduced a San Mateo-Hayward Bridge route. Designated as Line M, the service connected the BART stations of Castro Valley and Hayward with Foster City and San Mateo's Hillsdale Caltrain station. A second San Mateo-Hayward Bridge route, Line MA, was added in 2006 and discontinued in 2007. In 2004, the District began service on Line U across the Dumbarton Bridge, connecting Stanford University with ACE and BART trains in Fremont. As part of a consortium of transit agencies, the District already operated Dumbarton Express bus service across the Dumbarton Bridge.
On June 30, 2003, a new "rapid bus" line operating on San Pablo Avenue was introduced. Designated as Line 72R, the service connected Oakland with Richmond and operated at faster speeds than regular local service due to wide stop spacing and signal priority treatments.
Beginning December 10, 2005, AC Transit began participating in the regional All Nighter network, providing 24-hour bus service throughout its service area to supplement BART service, which does not operate during owl hours. AC Transit had provided 24-hour service on many of its trunk lines prior to this date, except in the late 1990s due to budget limitations.
On December 13, 2013, AC Transit adopted a new fare policy that brought changes to the transit system July 2014, including a new day pass that is in line with other transit agencies including VTA and SamTrans. The policy is also designed to speed boarding and help keep buses on schedule, provide greater convenience and value for customers, and encourage more customers to switch to Clipper
Rapid Bus and Bus Rapid Transit
A rapid bus line was introduced on San Pablo Avenue on June 30, 2003. Designated as Line 72R, it operates from 6 am to 7 pm at 12-minute intervals on weekdays, and 7 am to 7 pm at 15-minute intervals on weekends and holidays. Bus stops are spaced 2/3-mile apart on average, running between Jack London Square in Oakland and Contra Costa College in San Pablo, and buses receive signal priority at several intersections. Although the line does have scheduled timepoints en route, most buses typically travel along the route as fast as traffic allows.Line 1R operated on weekdays between Berkeley Way and Oxford Street in Berkeley and Bay Fair BART station in San Leandro, mainly along Telegraph Avenue, International Boulevard, and East 14th Street. Weekend and holiday service operated between Downtown Oakland and San Leandro only.
Line 1R was discontinued in 2016. On August 9, 2020, the 1R was largely replaced by Tempo, AC Transit's new Bus Rapid Transit route. Tempo operates between the Uptown Transit Center and the San Leandro BART station via International Boulevard and East 14th Street. It features 46 brand new platform stations with dedicated bus lanes along the majority of the route. The Telegraph Avenue alignment of the 1R between the Uptown Transit Center and U.C. Berkeley is currently being served by local route 6.