BART Debuts Mascot-Covered Train Car
- BART wrapped a train car with mascot artwork to test new advertising and revenue programs across the system. - The eye-catching car aims to spark smiles, photos and rider engagement during a limited pilot starting this week. - Officials say it's a revenue experiment amid ridership recovery and community outreach; details in report ( patch.com ).
Bay Area Rapid Transit has put a bright blue train car covered in dancing BARTy mascots into service as a pilot for full-car advertising wraps. (bart.gov) BART said riders could start spotting the car on Monday, April 20, and the agency expects it to roam the system for the next few months. Marketing director Dave Martindale said the wrap is testing whether the cars can support a new advertising product. (bart.gov) The pilot uses BART’s newer “Fleet of the Future” cars, not the retired legacy fleet. BART said it previously sold train wraps on older cars and is now checking how wrap materials hold up on the new exterior finish, including durability, appearance and maintenance demands. (bart.gov; bart.gov) BART is running the test while it says federal and state emergency funds used to balance operations are projected to run out in 2026. On its financials page, the agency says it is pursuing new funding and loans as it works through a deficit. (bart.gov) The wrapped car also fits into a broader outreach push built around BART’s mascots. BART introduced its anime-style mascots in 2023 after a 2022 artist call that drew nearly 500 submissions, and the agency said the characters are meant to promote transit use, especially among younger riders. (bart.gov) BARTy itself is one of those characters: a cartoon train mascot that already appears in BART promotions and merchandise. The agency is now using that in-house character as a placeholder design before deciding whether to sell similar full-car wraps to outside advertisers. (bart.gov; bart.gov) BART already sells other ad formats across the system, including digital displays, station posters, interior cards and larger station takeovers. Its advertising page says sales are managed by OUTFRONT, which markets BART’s audience to brands across the Bay Area. (bart.gov) Catherine Westphall, who manages BART’s advertising franchise program, said wrapping a train car is a “detailed, hands-on process” that has to be coordinated with maintenance schedules. After the pilot, staff plan to decide whether train wraps can be scaled into a long-term revenue program without affecting service. (bart.gov)
