Late-night East Bay bus service gets boost

East Bay residents can now spend a little more time in San Francisco without having to worry about missing the last BART train.

No, BART has not announced it is running 24 hour service, but is helping AC Transit expand late night bus service from San Francisco to the East Bay starting this weekend.

In the one-year pilot approved in October by BART board members, commuters can take the new 822 AC Transit route from San Francisco to the Pittsburg/Bay Point BART station. Line 822 will start at Mission and 24th streets in San Francisco and stop at all BART stations in downtown San Francisco.

The 822 will also make stops at Market Street and Van Ness Avenue and at the temporary Transbay Terminal on Howard and Beale streets. The new line will run approximately from 1 a.m. to 2:30 a.m and run every 30 minutes, according to AC Transit.

From the East Bay, the 822 will make stops at the 14th Street/Broadway and Rockridge BART in Oakland, then on to BART stations at Walnut Creek, Pleasant Hill, and Pittsburg/Bay Point.

AC Transit will also be expanding its service on the current 800 route from San Francisco to Richmond BART. On late Friday and Saturday nights, service frequency will improve from 30 minutes to 20 minutes between 12:30 a.m. to 2:30 a.m.

Commuters should take note that the 800 route will now start at Mission and 24th streets instead of Van Ness Avenue and Market street.

The existing 801 route from downtown Oakland to Fremont BART will see improved frequencies from 30 to 20 minutes to Bay Fair BART and 60 from 40 minutes to Fremont BART. The 801 will also run between 12:30 a.m. to 2:30 a.m.

Funding for the pilot will come from Lifeline grants, BART’s operating budget and fare revenue from the service. The cost of the pilot is $796,000 not including costs for marketing.

BART said they will evaluate the pilot based on the demand for the service and costs.

A complete schedule of late nigh service is available on AC Transit’s website.