BART Unveils Mascot-Covered Test Car
- BART unveiled a train car wrapped in mascot artwork as part of a pilot to test new revenue opportunities. - The eye-catching car aims to attract photos, rider goodwill and potential sponsorships during service on core Bay Area lines. - BART officials say the pilot explores advertising and sponsorship income as agencies seek new funding sources amid ridership shifts (patch.com).
Bay Area Rapid Transit has put a bright blue train car covered in dancing BARTy mascots into service as a test for selling full-car advertising wraps. (bart.gov) BART said riders could start spotting the car on Monday, April 20, and described it as the first train of its kind in the Bay Area. The agency said the wrap is being used on a Fleet of the Future car to see whether sponsored exterior designs can bring in new revenue. (bart.gov) The mascots are not new. BART introduced them in 2023 after a 2022 open call for California artists drew nearly 500 submissions, and the agency has since used them in youth-focused outreach and event promotions. (bart.gov) BART tied the test directly to its budget shortfall. On its financial crisis page, the agency says it faces an ongoing structural deficit of $350 million to $400 million, and its board on February 26, 2026 initially approved an alternative service plan to close a $376 million gap for the next fiscal year if no new funding arrives. (bart.gov) Agency officials say they have already cut costs by hundreds of millions of dollars through service changes, workforce reductions, labor controls, and lower non-labor spending. The wrapped car adds a revenue experiment to that cost-cutting campaign rather than replacing it. (bart.gov) BART has sold train wraps before, but on its older legacy fleet; Streetsblog reported this week that the new pilot revives that idea on the newer Fleet of the Future cars now running the system. BART’s own announcement did not give pricing, contract terms, or a schedule for broader rollout. (sf.streetsblog.org) (bart.gov) The agency is also trying to make the test do two jobs at once: bring in sponsorship interest and generate goodwill from riders who stop to photograph the car. BART said it expects the design to draw “smiles, waves, and plenty of photos” as it moves through stations. (bart.gov) That fits a broader BART strategy aimed at younger and occasional riders as commuting patterns remain below pre-pandemic norms. BART’s mascot program says the characters were designed to make the system feel more approachable and to promote public transit use, especially among youth riders. (bart.gov 1) (bart.gov 2) For now, the wrapped car is a rolling test: one blue train car, one set of mascots, and one more attempt to find money beyond fares as BART works through its 2026 budget gap. (bart.gov 1) (bart.gov 2)
