by Bryan Goebel
BART appears poised to end the transit system's ban on bicycles during peak commute hours.
The agency's staff is recommending that its board of directors adopt a new policy allowing bicycles on board from 7 to 9 a.m., and 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. That follows what BART says was a mostly successful one-week pilot in March in which a majority of riders surveyed favored lifting the restrictions. According to BART, 76 percent of riders had a favorable reaction, and bicyclists did "not impede or delay service." A similar pilot was conducted in August 2012.
During the test runs, BART did not see a big surge in bicyclists, mostly because rush hour space on trains is scarce. Under the new policy, bicyclists will still not be allowed to board the first three cars or any crowded trains.
"A week’s too short of time for people to, you know, take a new job or give up their parking space or make big changes in their commute patterns, but based on that week we feel like whatever the change is, is something that BART can handle," said BART Board President Tom Radulovich.