Second transbay tube planned for San Francisco Bay 6 Dec 2018

The Californian Bay Area Rapid Transit authority is planning a second rail crossing under San Francisco bay in the next ten years although it has not yet decided whether it will “actually be a tube”.

The transbay tube route

A statement from BART reads: “BART is taking early steps to create a second Transbay Tube, although it’s too early to say if it will actually be a tube. For right now, BART and Capitol Corridor partners are calling it the second Transbay Rail Crossing.”

At a presentation to the Board, BART and Capitol Corridor showed that a companion to the existing transbay tube could include both standard width rail tracks (known as standard-gauge) and the wider BART tracks. Including standard gauge tracks in a new transbay crossing would present some important opportunities such as enabling the tying together of the megaregion of the peninsula, Silicon Valley, San Francisco with East Bay, Sacra-menbto and Central Valley communities.

BART plans an economic impacts report and intends to use a feasibility study to narrow multiple alternatives for the second crossing to a short list of two to four options. Next steps include potentially awarding a contract for that study in mid-2019. Six objectives have been identified by the planners including a 24-hour service.

Opportunites identified by using standard gauge

Tenders are being invited from one contractor to provide “Strategic Advising and Program Management Services for BART’s New Transbay Rail Crossing Project. The District pres-ently intends to enter into no more than one, 5 year agreement, with a unilateral option to extend the Agreement for up to four additional 5 year periods, for a maximum agreement term of 25 years.”

BART intends to begin construction on the second crossing in about ten years. Expediency is key as projections show demand for transbay transit will outpace capacity by 2040 in medium or high demand growth scenarios.