BART’s Next Generation Fare Gates Project wins two prestigious honors

BART's transformative Next Generation Fare Gates Project is being recognized by two prestigious national organizations. The American Public Works Association named the fare gates as its winner of the 2026 Public Works Project Award and the International Partnering Institute announced the gates as its 2026 Collaborative Project of the Year. In August 2025, BART completed the replacement of 715 gates in all 50 stations across a system that spans five counties. The project was completed four months ahead of schedule.

"No other transit agency in the world has fare gates quite like these," said BART Assistant General Manager for Infrastructure Delivery and head of the fare gates project Sylvia Lamb. "This project is a true example of a BART-wide effort with every department contributing to the successful installation of new fare gates at every station."

There are several examples of how Next Generation Fare Gates have transformed the rider experience:

*The number of riders who tell BART they've witnessed fare evasion has dropped more than 50% compared with before the start of installation.

*New gates and BART Police Department's increased visible presence are critical parts of a comprehensive approach to rider safety that has resulted in a 41% drop in BART's overall crime rate.

*Hours spent on corrective maintenance inside BART stations for vandalism, graffiti, and broken items decreased 961 hours in the first six months after all stations had new gates.

*Early indications are the gates are responsible for BART fare revenue growing by about $10 million annually through reduced fare evasion.

The gates feature a unique door locking mechanism that makes their swing barriers very hard to push through, jump over, or maneuver under. The overall fare gate array height (gate, console, integrated barrier) forms a barrier of 72 inches minimum to deter fare evasion.

Learn more about BART's Next Generation Fare Gates Project here.