Dear friends,
Today, April 20, 2025, we reach the one-year anniversary of the Final Run of the Legacy Fleet. This post will take a look back at the year behind us and a brief glimpse of what lies ahead. This is an exclusive look at the final months of the legacy fleet, available only here and in the upcoming book, Legacy Fleet: The Story of BART’s Old Cars.

Decommissioning in late 2023/early 2024
After the final scheduled run on 9/10/2023, the legacy fleet was retired from “scheduled” service. A steady flow of B cars had been scrapped in the months prior, alongside some wrecked A cars (e.g. 1204).
With their removal from scheduled service and the impending roll-out of a new radio, destined for only a handful of cars, the decommissioning program continued now with a mixture of A and B cars. The first of the A cars to be scrapped as end-of-life without a career-ending incident was 1233 on October 4, 2024. For a period of time, car decommissioning was almost random, outside of a radio mod or other restricting holding the car back (e.g. 1164 was slated for preservation).
 
A total of 9 A2 cars were decommissioned in October, followed by 17 in November, 11 in December, 2 in January 2024, and 3 in February 2024 – a total of 42 cars. These were the “great months of the A car scrapping.” After the decommissioning of the 1742 on February 16, 2024, the decision was made to hold on to the remaining fleet of 13 A cars and 22 B cars (and of course the C car for WRM) until after the final ceremonial run of the legacy fleet.

Unscheduled legacy trains in service
By and large, at least one legacy train was out in service almost every day to every other day, from September 11, 2023 to March 2, 2024 – serving as the ready reserve train pressed into service. The last legacy fleet train I rode was on the Blue Line on February 22, 2024 - 1235, 1584, 1759, 1760, 1817, 1164
Of historical note, 1235 was the final legacy car sent to the scrapyard (that was not previously selected for any post-BART use), 1759 is used as an Earthquake shake testing car in a lab in Richmond, 1760 was used as a fire department training car after decommissioning, and 1164 is of course preserved by the Western Railway Museum. Fittingly, 1164 was the final legacy car I rode in true revenue service.
The week after, on the 2/23, 2/24, and 2/27, I saw: 1257, 1587, 1580, 1897 (Zoho), 1605, 1259 on the Transfer Tracks at Hayward Yard.

Final Run on 4/20/2024
April 20, 2024, was the final day of the Legacy Fleet in service, the final ceremonial run. It was a whole event, with some 3,000 people in attendance. Trains were as follows:
The first train to depart was train 104 with the following cars:
1212, 1897, 1607, 1738, 1259 (Bay Fair end)
 
The second legacy train to depart MacArthur was train 100 with the following cars:
1203, 1760, 1759, 1584, 1834, 1890, 1515, 1580, 1911, 1269 (Fremont end)
 
The third and final legacy train to depart MacArthur was train 102 with the following cars:
1260, 1587, 1548, 1721, 1501, 1857, 1596, 1512, 1869, 1241 (Fremont end).
 
More details are available on the page: Final Run

Home Stretch of Scrapping
After the joyful sendoff, the final work was left in decommissioning the last cars of the fleet – those final 13 A cars and 22 B cars (and of course the C car).
A total of 27 cars were sent to the scrapyard – 1605 and 1817 were sent over on April 26, 2024, and a steady flow continued until 1235 and 1587 were sent over on May 21, 2024.
 
Here is a picture of an entire train’s worth of cars being scrapped (left to right): 1219, 1512, 1596, 1878, 1241. And to boot, 1257 and 1760 are laying in the back behind these cars.
 
The final BART legacy cars to reach end-of-life decommissioning were a group of 5 cars on the week of May 20, 2024 – one month after the final run. The last car to be decommissioned was #1235.

Not all cars were scrapped
The Legacy Fleet was aptly named. No other rapid transit system in the world used aluminum bodied cars for frontline service for over 50 continuous years, and, arguably, no other rapid transit cars represented such a forward-looking concept of post-WWII public transportation. It was only fitting that a few select cars lived on, in one form or another.
The full page of the legacy fleet after BART is available on this website too, with details on each car and its intended use. As of April 20, 2025, the following cars have been sent out for new lives:

The 1759 was sent out for earthquake shake tests on August 2, 2024. This car is being used to test ballast stability and aerial structures and the stability of the car.

Western Railway Museum
1164, 1834, 329
 
The Western Railway Museum preserves the history of electric railways throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. These innovative cars have earned a place in the museum – representing the Bay Area’s bold attempt to bring public transit back to everyday life.
The WRM is the only place to have a complete legacy train, with full trainline. The 1164 arrived on August 9, 2024, the 1834 on September 11, and the 329 on October 4. Oddly enough, September 11, 1972 was BART’s opening day and October 4 is 10-4 (“message received”).
The exterior of the cars is viewable as part of Carbarn 3 tours at the WRM. Currently, we are working on the interior with modifications to car electrical systems to have them lit up without 1000v third rail power. Progress is in full swing and the cars are not currently accessible for the public. Stay tuned though, because they may have a BART preview day where everyone can check out the cars in September 2025.

Sierra Train House, a short-term rental house with a BART car, received their 1234 on March 14, 2025. This car has a new home in Jamestown in the foothill of the Sierras and their project is also underway with an opening sometime late this year or into 2026.

The Oakland Ballers received their car earlier this week. The 1253 was initially set up for the Oakland A’s but they abandoned that plan just like they abandoned Oakland. This new hometown team will convert their 1253 into a concessions stand at their field in West Oakland.

Of course, 323 was the first BART car in this century to be sent somewhere other than the scrapyard, a partially complete C car in Hayward sent out in December 2022. It is being used as a fire training prop.

A few more A cars are awaiting their fate. Stay tuned for those updates as the months continue.

Have a wonderful Easter.
-ATP

The BART revenue fleet was designed for a top speed of 80 mph, but the cars have exceeded this speed during various points in history.
 
From time to time, the legacy fleet ran at 83-84 mph under automatic mode during revenue service, typically while going down the grades in the Transbay Tube with smaller wheels (closer to 28 inches as compared to the 30 inch new wheel diameter).
 
Even bolder records were under manual control with the governor jumpered allowing the car to reach whatever speed the motors would take it. These were often done with only a single car, and of course done outside of revenue service.

Early 1970s:
There are rumors of a BART train reaching speeds of up to 110 mph, or more, before the motors blew out, during the early 1970s. Unfortunately, the details of this early 1970s test are likely lost to time, but the test, if it occurred, would have likely happened on the A line, around Hayward or Fremont.

Hayward Test Track
Additionally, old timers remarked that a car, ungoverned, once reached 120 mph on the Hayward Test Track. Another Train Operator notes his record on the test track as 93 mph with a single car.
 
With this in mind, the BART car was almost certainly the fastest urban rapid transit vehicle in the United States, beating the confirmed 87.75 mph record of the New York City Subway’s R-44 cars by a country mile.
 

The most recent addition to my number plate collection is a Y end number plate from B2 car 1809. This is the story of the car.

Like all other B2 cars numbered 1801-1913, the 1809 was originally built as an A car. In the 1809's case, it was built as A car 237, with a final inspection date of 3/7/1973 and receipt of delivery on 6/26/1973. Roughly speaking it was about the 214th car delivered, of a series of orders totaling 450 revenue cars.

Kenneth Clyde Jenkins captured the 237 at Daly City a few times in the mid 1970s. Here are some of his pictures, now in my collection.

In the late 1970s to early 1980s, BART Hayward Shop converted 35 A cars to B cars, allowing for longer weekday trains and enough cars for weekend operation. Many of these cars were previously damaged in accidents, fires, or other incidents.

It's hard to say at the moment what was the exact reason behind the conversion, but A car 237 was involved in an ATC-related incident at Richmond station on September 30, 1975.

The A to B car conversion was underway by 1980 and A car 237 was converted into B car 809 (9th conversion) during this time. From the 1980s to late 1990s, it rolled as B car 809. In total, it rolled about 4 million miles as A car 237/B car 809.

The entire remaining A and B car fleet was rebuilt during the turn of the century to allow for another couple decades of service. All B cars were rebuilt into B2 cars, including car 809, which became B2 car 1809 in 2000.

The 1809 rolled throughout the system, and in its final years was assigned to Concord and later Richmond yard.

I last saw the 1809 at Hayward yard, stored awaiting decommissioning on June 16, 2023. It was decommissioned just a few weeks later, on June 30, 2023 - a few days after reaching 50 years on the property (where it began, and ended at Hayward Yard).

A Y-end (once the cab end, when it was an A car) number plate from the 1809 resides in my collection, where it remains as a reminder of a well-traveled, and well-storied BART car.

Today marks the final chapter of one of BART’s most historic Legacy Cars: the Fremont Flyer.
The Fremont Flyer was originally known as A car 143, the 48th car off of the Rohr assembly line in Chula Vista, CA. The car was delivered to Hayward Yard on August 31, 1972, less than two weeks ahead of BART’s opening day, and underwent testing to ensure the car was ready for revenue service – or so it was thought.

The shiny new 143 entered revenue service on October 2, 1972, filling in for two broken down trains. Dispatched as Train 307, a short two car train with A cars 143 and A car 118 – the latter was a “Day One veteran” – headed south from Hayward Yard to Fremont station (143 leading), thence to MacArthur (118 leading), the northern terminus at the time. Train 307 then headed south to Fremont.

While approaching the A85 interlocking just north of Fremont station, the train received a 27-mph speed code – one of eight discreet speed codes on the BART ATC system – to ensure the train would safely cross over from track 1 to track 2 and stop within the platform. Unbeknownst to anyone on the train, a tiny yet faulty crystal, controlling an oscillator on a printed circuit board, incorrectly decoded the speed code to mean the train should speed up to almost 70 mph – which it achieved. 

Crossing over the A85 interlocking at 66 mph, the train attendant recognized something was amiss and did all that was possible to stop the train (including pressing the stop button so hard he broke the mounting and pushed it through the console). Even then, the braking was inadequate; the train sped through the center of platform 2 at 42-50 mph and impacted the sandpile at about 26-33 mph (sources debate speeds), continued and landed in the parking lot – short of a stop sign. Injured riders and the train attendant were rushed to the nearby Washington Hospital.

The accident brought national attention to the safety of BART, alongside significant changes to carborne ATC equipment and changes across the system. Such changes included, but were not limited to, additional circuitry to ensure the decoding of the correct speed code, alongside the addition of wayside markers showing where a train should start braking and the maximum speed. Years of revisions and refinement to the ATC system following the Fremont Flyer incident has made BART a safer system for all who ride it.

A car 143 never carried another paying rider but it found a new life as a B car. In fact, the damage was severe enough for the BART forces to recommend salvaging parts and scrapping the car.

Fortunately, BART engineering know-how was on its side and the 143 was repairs and converted into B car 826 by Hayward Shop forces by the end of 1981. It then rolled again, this time as a standard B car for about 20 years.

As part of the A and B car refurbishment of the A and B cars during the turn of the century, B car 826 was rebuilt and renumbered into B2 car 1826. In its final years, it was assigned to Concord yard and seen in the middle of long Yellow line trains.

After this major incident, but then a successful repair and conversion, old 143 carried thousands of passengers millions of miles.

BART is currently replacing their Legacy Cars with the Fleet of the Future cars. The Fremont Flyer was no exception to this, and after 50 years since it first entered revenue service, this car was decommissioned. BART forces also recognized the historical importance of this car, and invited Western Railway Museum volunteers to preserve artifacts from this car for posterity and for use in the future Rapid Transit History Center. WRM volunteers were able to identify the Y end (once cab end) exterior and interior number plates, the ADtranz rebuilding plate (c. 2001), and a seat.

These artifacts will help tell us tell the story of one of the most historic transit vehicles of the BART legacy fleet.