With NBA All-Star Weekend coming to the Bay Area, here’s how BART can get East Bay fans to the action.
NBA All-Star events will be taking place from Feb. 14 to Feb. 16 at Oakland Arena and San Francisco’s Chase Center, Moscone Center and Pier 48. With games and concerts being held at the various venues, public transit can help people get around the Bay quickly so they don’t miss these events. Like Caltrain, BART is also partnering with the NBA for All-Star Weekend, and they will be giving away exclusive prizes via the NBA Events app.
While parking can be notoriously tricky in the Bay Area, public transportation allows attendees to travel freely without worrying about the cost or risk of damage to their car. BART spokesman Jim Allison said that people who may not live near a BART station can drive to one and park there for free while they take the train to the events in Oakland and San Francisco.
“Parking in San Francisco on a good day is almost impossible in many cases, and for something like the NBA All-Star events, just driving through the city and finding parking is a big hassle, whereas our parking at the BART station is free on the weekends,” Allison said.
Clipper
At most of these BART stations, people can use a Clipper card, which is valid to pay for fares at all Bay Area transit agencies, including BART, SamTrans, VTA, Muni and AC Transit. Riders age 5 to 18 or 65 and up can also apply for a discounted Clipper card pending birth date verification.
The pass is used by tapping either the physical card or a digital version from the Clipper app after it’s transferred to your Apple Wallet or Google Wallet when boarding a bus or train.
Clipper cards are available for purchase online and can be mailed to you directly. If you prefer to buy the card in person, there are staffed locations at the Clipper Customer Service Center at the Embarcadero BART/Muni Station Concourse, Bay Crossings at the Ferry Building in San Francisco, Clipper Customer Service at AC Transit at 1600 Franklin St. in Oakland, or at either VTA office in San Jose. You can also buy a Clipper Card at Walgreens and other certain retail stores. Train stations throughout the Bay Area also have self-serve machines, where you can buy a new card.
You can also set up a new card in the Clipper app or transfer an existing Clipper card to your Apple Wallet or Google Wallet. With this method, a physical card is no longer necessary and you can tap your digital card at any reader.
You can also reload your Clipper card online or in-person at a retailer or self-serve machine or set it to automatically reload. Further instructions on how to obtain and use a Clipper card can be used and reloaded can be found at clippercard.com/ClipperWeb.
BART
Bay Area Rapid Transit runs from the southernmost station in San Jose along the eastern side of the San Francisco Bay to Oakland and San Francisco, and down the Peninsula. Fares can vary depending on the distance traveled. For example, going from the Berryessa station to 16th Street Mission would cost $9.45 without a discounted Clipper card. But if you wanted to go from Oakland Arena to Chase Center, boarding at the Coliseum station and exiting at 16th Street Mission would only cost $5.35.
Allison said BART will not be altering their schedule at all for the weekend. They operate on weekdays from 5 a.m. to midnight. On Saturday, they run from 6 a.m. to midnight. On Sundays, trains run from 8 a.m. to midnight. Allison said they are trying to project ridership for the weekend to determine how many cars each train will have, especially since they have to consider additional riders for the Chinese New Year parade on the night of Feb. 15.
Some of the stadiums are also close to BART stations, making it easy to navigate around the bay. Oakland Arena is directly served by the Coliseum BART Station, where riders can walk across a pedestrian bridge to reach the venue. Allision said Moscone Center is a two- to three-block walk from the Montgomery Street Station.
There are two ways to get to Chase Center after using BART. After disembarking at the Powell Street Station, riders can transfer to the Muni T Third trains at Union Square Station. After following the signs on the platform, special event trains labelled “S Shuttle Mission Bay” will take riders to the UCSF/Chase Center stop. The other way to get Chase Center is by getting off the train at the 16th Street/Mission Station and taking a special Muni 78X bus to a stop on 16th Street and Illinois Street.
Since Pier 48 and Chase Center are both on the waterfront, getting there with BART is similar. From the Powell Street Station and following the signs on the platform to Muni, the “S Shuttle Mission Bay” train will take riders to Mission Rock so they can walk to Pier 48. Riders can also get off at Embarcadero and transfer to the Muni N Judah trains at the upper level of the station. BART advised riders to exit at King Street and 2nd Street and walk to Pier 48.
“We serve both Oakland and San Francisco with our trains, so we’d be happy to make it a day for people,” Allison said.
More info about BART’s partnership with NBA All-Star Weekend can be found at: www.bart.gov.
AC Transit
AC Transit will also be providing buses between San Francisco and Oakland to reach all four arenas. Riders were advised to take Bus lines 45, 46L, 73, 90, 98, NL, and O to reach the stadiums.
The transit agency will be updating their social media profiles with route videos and real-time updates on routes, schedules and service alerts.