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Gov. Gavin Newsom authorized a $590 million emergency bridge loan on Thursday to prevent Bay Area transit agencies from shuttering stations and slashing service.
The financing supports the region’s four largest transit operators: BART, Muni, Caltrain and AC Transit. The agencies face a combined $800 million deficit, triggered by the slow recovery of ridership following the pandemic, rising costs and the exhaustion of federal emergency relief funds.
While much smaller than the $2 billion in emergency funds that Bay Area lawmakers requested in 2025 — which Newsom rejected last May — state Sen. Scott Wiener said Thursday the loan is critical to preventing an “unraveling” of the system that connects the region…