BART rider finds train car torn apart, others call it 'flipping'

CASTRO VALLEY, Calif. (KGO) -- When a rider hops on a BART train, the usual hope is to grab an empty seat.

In Diane Wagner's case, there were plenty of empty seats for her ride home to Castro Valley, but they were flipped over. It appeared as though the train had been torn a part.

Wagner said she rushed over to the conductor for help at the 24th and Mission station following her discovery.

"He said they're drug people on drugs that come on the train, flip the seats over, and look for money," Wagner said.

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Wager said another employee told her, that incident wasn't the first time.

"She goes it's what they call 'flipping,' so there's a word for it," Wagner said.

BART is aware and told ABC 7 News people often dig for phones too.

By 2022, BART should have all of 'Fleet of the Future' cars delivered. The cushions do not flip over in the new models.

BART said the train cars are cleaned at the end of each run, but Wagner feels this is a safety issue too.

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"I think the Bay Area deserves a safe, clean public transportation system," Wagner said.

It can often seem like BART troubles are constant. Someone snapped a photo of a large trash bin on the train on Wednesday. BART cannot stop people from bringing large items on the train.

Earlier this week, a man was removed from a train after wielding two chainsaws. A rider tweeted a video of him to BART and officers arrested the man a few stops later.

"We really rely on our riders to alert us the moment they see something that's not right," Alicia Trost, BART's Department Manager, said.

Wagner did alert BART. She plans to keep doing it and hopes others do too.