BART Customer Satisfaction Drops 10% In 3 Years, Riders Worry About Crowded Cars, Cleanliness

OAKLAND (CBS SF) – Bay Area Rapid Transit is looking to improve service after numbers released Thursday from a recent revealed customer satisfaction with the transportation service has fallen.

The survey found 74 percent of riders were satisfied with BART service, down from 84 percent of those surveyed in 2012.

The survey was presented to BART's Board of Directors Thursday.

"High ridership and an aging infrastructure are stressing the BART system," BART General Manager Grace Crunican said in a statement. "This survey underscores the importance of current and planned initiatives to modernize and increase the capacity of BART stations and BART train service."

Customers' perception of seat availability has fallen by 8.5 percent since a 2012 survey, officials said.

Customers were also concerned with the temperatures inside trains, interior cleanliness and the cleanliness of stations.

Officials said BART plans to improve operational flexibility during peak commute hours and during delays with train rehabilitation projects and the implementation of the Contra Costa Crossover on the Pittsburg/Bay Point line, a project which will simplify moving trains from one track to another.

BART also plans on upgrading air conditioning systems on the most problematic cars and is proposing hiring additional cleaning crews to help keep up with increased ridership.

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