BART's fare enforcement system not increasing revenue nor making agency safer, new study says

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- A new study indicates efforts to crackdown on fare jumpers have not made BART safer nor has it increased revenue as the transit agency has claimed.

The Center for Policy Equity, a nonprofit research center, based at Yale, says it is skeptical of BART's claims.

In the past, some BART riders say they've seen fare jumpers-people not paying to ride public transit.

BART says all of its stations will have new fare gates by the end of the year and that those gates help curb crime, raise revenue, and make riders feel safer.

Some riders agree.

"I feel like my experience on BART is a bit safer," said Michael Crowell, a BART rider.

"The whole point of those gates is to deter people, to make people pay and to deter people from jumping.. it works," said Chris Williams, a BART rider.

Just last week, the transit agency said BART has seen an overall drop in violent crime of 23%.

MORE: Are BART's new 7-foot fare gates working to deter evaders? Here's what agency says

BART also said it saw a 50% drop in its overall crime rate for the first three months of this year compared with the same period in 2024.

BART says the new fare gates and citations have a lot to do with the drop in crime and increase in revenue raised.

But a new study says BART "overstated the financial impacts of fare evasion" and that the agency "lacks a cohesive strategy to address its underlying issues"

The study went on to state:

"The evidence in this report suggests that punitive measures do not translate into significant revenue recovery or enhanced safety for riders."

ABC7 News asked riders what they thought of the results of the study.

"That makes sense for sure. Because it's not really stopping issues," said Charlie Ellis, a BART rider.

"If it help improves the perception of BART- I think it does a lot more for ridership than citations," said Crowell.

MORE: BART begins installing new fare gates at SF stations to stop evaders

Some say fare enforcement operations disproportionately impact Black and Brown riders and low-income riders.

BART says it offers discounts for riders who are low income, youth, or seniors.

In response to the study, BART offered a written statement stating:

"This report from the Center for Policing Equity was requested by the Office of the Independent Police Auditor and BART leadership has not been given sufficient time to read the report or weigh in on the findings. We have no plans to change our current efforts to replace fare gates and enforce our code of conduct, which includes the enforcement of fare payment and an increase in the visible safety presence in the system."

The statement went on to say:
"BART riders are already seeing positive changes resulting from the successful installation of Next Generation Fare Gates at 30 stations across the system. These include revitalized station environments, improved access for riders in wheelchairs, and a 1/3 drop in the number of riders who reported seeing fare evasion on their trip. These new gates serve as a powerful deterrent against fare evasion and as a result will reduce the number of interactions between BART PD and would-be fare evaders. We look forward to new fare gates being installed at all 50 BART stations by the end of this year."

BART issued this statement as a clarification to its strategy:
"BART has expanded the use of ambassadors and crisis intervention specialists, recently adding additional crisis intervention positions to our budget, and we also have a Senior Manager of Social Service Partnerships tasked with further developing partnership with those who help people with housing, drug addiction, mental health and other case management."