BART hires new general manager from within

The BART Board of Directors on Thursday unanimously voted to hire a current agency employee to replace its recently retired general manager. Robert “Bob” Powers will take over for Grace Crunican, under whom he served as deputy general manager since 2017, according to BART. Powers has been working at BART for seven years, most recently as the agency’s interim general manager following Crunican’s departure.

BART Board President Bevan Dufty said:

“He has a tremendous understanding of the district’s operations, workforce, and aspirational vision for the future and will provide a smooth transition keeping BART focused on the work ahead.”

Powers, who will make $385,000 a year, said he plans to go on a “listening tour” in order to hear directly from riders and BART employees.

Powers said:

“I’ll work to protect the public’s investment by delivering major projects that will improve and expand service for our riders like the Fleet of the Future, overhauling of aged infrastructure, a new train control system, expansion into Silicon Valley and addressing quality of life issues.”

Prior to his BART tenure, Powers worked for the departments of transportation in both Seattle and Baltimore. He holds degrees in civil and structural engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. As BART’s top administrator, Powers will oversee a $2.4 billion budget along with the agency’s 3,600 employees.