BART power outage closes Oakland stations, causes systemwide delays

A power outage of unknown origin shut down four stations in Oakland on Saturday evening.

The BART system experienced major delays and station closures Saturday evening due to an equipment problem on the track and a loss of power.

Four stations in Oakland remained closed as of 6:30 p.m. — 19th Street, 12th Street, Fruitvale and Lake Merritt. “We have a loss of power between those stations, and that means a loss of train control,” BART spokesperson Cheryl Stalter said in a media-line statement on Saturday.

What triggered the power outage remains a mystery. “We don’t know the cause of it,” Stalter said. “We are trying to figure it out, and as soon as we do we’ll have crews out working on it.”

There is no Green Line service between Berryessa and Daly City, according to a BART alert. And there is no Red Line service between Richmond and Millbrae. Trains are turning back at MacArthur, West Oakland and Coliseum stations.

In the meantime, commuters should try to find other ways to get around town.

“People should really try to have alternative transportation,” said Stalter. “I am working to see if there’s a bus bridge that’ll be activated, or if AC Transit will provide parallel service. I don’t know that (yet).”

People looking for updates can check the BART advisory page (bart.gov/schedules/advisories) and its Twitter /X account (x.com/SFBART).