BART ready to launch Oakland Airport service

OAKLAND, Calif. (KGO) -- Nearly 30 years in the making, a ribbon cutting ceremony and huge celebration was held to launch the new BART to Oakland Airport service.

"The Oakland International Airport joins a very elite group of airports that have plane-to-train connections," said BART General manager, Vilma Perry.

Football fans arriving for the weekend still had to catch a bus from Oakland's airport to a BART train. But this will be the last time.

"We just came in and we had to ride the bus, but when we come back to the airport on Sunday, we will take the BART all the way to airport and we can't wait!" said Sandi Hill, a San Diego resident.

The BART connector between the Oakland Coliseum Station and the airport will start running at 6 am on Saturday, four years after officials broke ground on the project.

"It's about time and long overdue. No more traffic jams or waiting in line. It's great!" said Louis Jernigan from Stockton.

BART officials say they've been pressuring their contractors and testing the line in the overnight hours to make sure this service was available in time for the busy holiday season.

"We were running trains in a loop for 30 straight hours. We were testing escalators and elevators. So much more goes into this than just the train service. We've been having neighboring fire and police come and do drills with us," explained Alicia Trost, a BART spokesperson.

These automated trains have few seats but lots of room for luggage. The trains travels 30 miles per hour for 3.1 miles.

In 2002, the price tag was $232-million, but the delivery price is $484 million.

"I thought it was a nice smooth ride, smoother than what I thought it would be and it went faster even though they said 8 minutes, it seemed faster than 8 minutes," Laura Fultz, who rode the new trains on during a free trail ride open to the public on Friday afternoon.

It costs $6 to ride between the Coliseum Station and Oakland Airport - twice as much as the bus. But officials don't think that will keep people from getting on board.

"A lot of people said no one is going to take BART to SFO because it's too expensive. Now, it's our fastest growing line," said Trost.

In addition, the new line runs above Hegeneberger Road, allowing the train to bypass traffic lights and congestion on the street. Passengers can also use their Clipper Cards to pay for tickets.

The Oakland Airport BART station is located just across from the Terminal 1 baggage claim area and a short walk from Terminal 2.

Details of the service, including train times, can be found here.