BART approves FY24 and FY25 budgets, faces huge fiscal deficits in 2025
Image credit: BART
The San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) Board of Directors has approved a two-year budget that addresses highly uncertain, challenging financial outlook. Although the budget is balanced for FY24 (July 1, 2023 - June 30, 2024), a $93 million deficit looms for FY25.
The total FY24 operating and capital budget is $2.6 billion, with capital funding dedicated to improvements such as the Next Generation Fare Gate program, escalator replacement, Fleet of the Future train cars and Measure RR rebuilding projects.
Federal emergency funds have sustained BART operations since the outset of the pandemic, but BART expects to run out of that funding around March 2025. After that, BART could face deficits of $300 million a year without temporary state funding.
This is the second year in which the BART adopted a two-year budget that combines operating and capital financial plans. The shift to a two-year cycle reflects a more strategic approach to long-term financial planning.
The Board voted to increase fares twice over two years, by 5.5% each. The increases are tied to the rate of inflation minus a half-percentage point.
Source: BART
