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    Bay Area Rapid Transit opens three new station entrance canopies in downtown San Francisco

    May 12, 2023
    BART completed construction on the Montgomery St. Station, the Powell St. Station and the Civic Center Station.
    Related To: Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART)
    BART
    Montgomery St. Station canopy, one of three new canopies BART has completed at stations in downtown San Francisco.
    Montgomery St. Station canopy, one of three new canopies BART has completed at stations in downtown San Francisco.

    Downtown San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) riders will only need to look up to see the agency’s latest completed project: A trio of new station entrance canopies. The Montgomery St. Station canopy opened to the public on April 17 at the corner of Market and New Montgomery St. At the corner of Market and 5th St., the Powell St. Station canopy opened on April 24 and the Civic Center Station canopy at the corner of Market and 8th St. opened on April 28.

    Two pilot canopies had already been completed, one at Powell St. Station on the corner of Market and Ellis St. and one at Civic Center Station at the corner of Market and 7th St., bringing the total number of canopies open to five. Canopies are currently under construction at Embarcadero Station on the corner of Davis and Market St. at Montgomery St. Station on the corner of Montgomery and Post St. and at Powell St. Station on the south side of Market and 4th St.

    On January 23, 2020, the BART Board of Directors approved a contract to construct 22 canopies over entrances at BART stations along Market St. in downtown San Francisco.

    The canopies will help to protect new escalators being installed from wear-and-tear of elements like rain and wind-swept debris, as well as provide an added layer of station security and cleanliness through motorized gates that allow the entrances to be locked at street level when stations are closed. The added protection from the existing canopy at 19th St./Oakland Station has reduced escalator down time by about 30 percent.

    Each canopy includes a real-time digital display that shows train arrival times, a retractable gate, LED lighting, security cameras, art elements and, in limited locations, a living roof.

    The canopy project is in conjunction with the Market Street Escalators Renovation Project. That project, approved in March 2019, will install and replace 41 escalators at Embarcadero, Montgomery St., Powell St., and Civic Center stations. Twenty-two of the escalators that will be replaced extend from the street to the concourse levels of the stations while 18 connect concourses with station platforms.

    The project to install canopies is funded by voter approved Measure RR funds, San Francisco Prop A funds, and state Prop 1A funds.