The Bay Area Rapid Transit system was always meant to offer a glimpse of the future. When it debuted in 1972, BART featured sleek, space-age aesthetics and cutting-edge innovations in train control and signaling, running above and below ground through Oakland, San Francisco, and surrounding communities.
Today, BART still previews the future for American cities—but not in the way its designers intended. Soaring costs, driven largely by excessive labor spending, have pushed the system to the brink of bankruptcy. Transit networks in New York, Chicago, Washington, D.C., and elsewhere risk a similar fate if they don’t get their budgets under control.
Beginning next year, BART expects annual deficits of $400 million—nearly a third of its operating budget. Even under optimistic projections, its cash reserves will only cover the shortfall through the end of the decade. With more than $3 billion in outstanding debt and a recent credit rating downgrade, borrowing isn’t a viable option…