Thu Jul 24 23:20:00 UTC 2025: Okay, here’s a news article summarizing the provided text:

**BART Ridership Surges in June, Fueled by Weekend Events and Safety Initiatives**

**San Francisco, CA –** The Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) system is experiencing a resurgence, reporting a significant 13.4% increase in ridership for June 2025 compared to the same period last year. This boost reflects ongoing efforts to enhance service reliability, improve safety, and maintain cleanliness across the network.

Weekend travel has been a key driver of this growth. Saturday ridership alone jumped 15.2% between May and June, and is a remarkable 24.6% higher than June 2024. BART officials attribute this surge partly to large-scale public events drawing crowds to the Bay Area.

“No Kings Day” demonstrations on June 14th resulted in one of the busiest Saturdays since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Similarly, the San Francisco Pride Parade on June 29th propelled the system to its second-highest Sunday ridership since 2020.

“We are thrilled to see more people returning to BART and enjoying all that the Bay Area has to offer,” said a BART spokesperson. “Our commitment to providing a safe, clean, and reliable transportation option is resonating with riders.”

These positive figures come as BART continues to recover from the long-term effects of remote work on weekday commuter numbers. The agency’s “Safe and Clean Plan,” which includes increased deep-cleaning schedules and a bolstered BART Police presence, is aimed at addressing customer concerns and attracting more riders.

Other initiatives, such as the full deployment of the “Fleet of the Future” trains and the installation of Next Generation Fare Gates designed to curb fare evasion, are also contributing to the improved rider experience.

BART is also actively partnering with sports teams, community groups, and event organizers to encourage leisure travel throughout the region.

**National Rail News in Brief:**

In other rail news:

* New York City Transit has debuted a standard R211 train on the B line.
* Amtrak’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) identified gaps in service for passengers with disabilities.
* Amtrak’s state-sponsored Borealis train carried its 250,000th passenger over the Independence Day 2025 holiday weekend.
* The US DOT is terminating approximately 4 billion USD in unspent federal funding allocated to the California High-Speed Rail project.

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