10/14/2026
At 10:15am Thursday, BART staff will test their ShakeAlert early warning earthquake system. Trains will automatically slow down to 27mph. Then all trains will come to a *very brief* stop.
BART will participate in the 2026 International ShakeOut Day earthquake drill on Thursday, October 15, to test our emergency response systems and to help raise public awareness of the importance of having a plan and being prepared.
At 10:15am, BART staff will trigger our ShakeAlert early warning earthquake system to ensure it is functioning and working correctly. Once triggered, trains will automatically slow down to 27mph and then return to normal speed. BART staff will also make a systemwide public announcement encouraging riders to be prepared for earthquakes. BART will also test our internal communications systems to notify employees and the Operations Control Center will observe earthquake alarms and our train control systems to ensure they are working properly. BART has also added simulated damage inspections to its ShakeAlert drill, which you can read more about below.
BART is an early adopter of the ShakeAlert system, which is connected to a network of USGS seismic sensors throughout California. When the BART seismic condition threshold is reached is reached, the system sends a speed restriction command to trains. This system removes human response time and can even slow trains down before the shaking occurs depending on how far away the quake is centered.
BART has an Earthquake Emergency Response Plan, and we hold several drills a year to ensure staff is trained and ready to respond. In the event of an earthquake, riders should listen for instructions from BART personnel. Employees are trained to evacuate the public from dangerous areas. Following an earthquake, BART trains are held in place (except for trains in the Transbay Tube and Berkeley Hills Tunnel) until it is determined it is safe to move the train to the nearest station where riders will be offboarded.
In September 2024, BART completed its Earthquake Safety Program, which retrofitted vulnerable high traffic portions of the original system to make it safer in a large quake. The Earthquake Safety Program was funded in part by Measure AA, a $980 million general obligation BART bond approved by voters in 2004. The program focused on upgrading portions of the original system not only for life safety but also to ensure that we can return to operation shortly after a major earthquake.
BART's Earthquake Response Team (ERT) consists of around sixty engineers and thirty maintenance employees that fan out across the system in the advent of a major earthquake, defined as an earthquake with a magnitude of 6.0 or greater with an epicenter within 50 miles of the BART system. Since its inception, the ERT has never been activated for a real event, but they train throughout the year to prepare for the real possibility of a massive earthquake rattling the Bay Area.
Visit Shakeout.org for simple safety steps during earthquakes.
