More news on this day
BART riders heading to and from San Francisco International Airport are confronting another day of major delays, as service near the airport is curtailed and trains are unable to operate normally through the busy SFO corridor.
Get the latest news straight to your inbox!
Service halted near airport after cascading problems
Reports from transit alerts and regional coverage indicate that BART service between Daly City and San Francisco International Airport has been repeatedly disrupted this week, leaving trains unable to operate on the usual Red Line route into the airport. Coverage of the latest incident describes service halted in both directions between Daly City and SFO, effectively cutting direct rail access to the airport at the height of the evening travel period.
The latest disruption follows days of compounding issues on the system, including a fire at a BART power substation near Daly City and a separate fire near West Oakland that contributed to widespread delays. According to publicly available updates, those earlier incidents already had trains off schedule across multiple lines, especially routes serving SFO and Millbrae. The newest shutdown near the airport adds another layer of uncertainty for travelers who rely on BART to make flight departures and late-night arrivals.
Advisory pages show that BART has also been managing long-running track and train-control modernization work in the Millbrae and SFO area, with the agency warning that riders should expect intermittent 30 minute delays in that corridor on many evenings. Against that backdrop of planned single tracking and reduced speeds, unplanned emergencies have pushed the system into prolonged, network-wide disruption.
Airport travelers forced into detours and workarounds
With direct BART service into SFO suspended during the latest shutdown, riders have been funneled into a patchwork of alternatives. Social media posts and rider forums describe crowded platforms around Daly City and San Francisco stations, with announcements directing airport-bound passengers to backtrack, detour, or transfer to other modes such as ferries and buses.
Some recent disruptions near Daly City have allowed limited BART service to continue operating in the southernmost portion of the line, between Colma, SFO, and Millbrae, while trains from the East Bay and central San Francisco turned back short of the airport. When full closures occur, however, riders report that they are instructed to exit at earlier stations and complete the trip by surface transit, airport shuttles, or ride-hailing services, often at significant extra time and cost.
The situation is particularly acute for visitors unfamiliar with Bay Area transit. Millbrae station is a critical intermodal hub connecting BART with Caltrain and multiple bus operators serving the Peninsula and airport area. When the SFO branch is out of service, travelers arriving on regional rail at Millbrae must quickly adjust to changed patterns, including temporary bus bridges or irregular shuttle operations between Millbrae and the airport.
Ongoing track work near SFO adds to rider frustration
Separate from the latest emergency closure, BART has been carrying out long-term modernization work around SFO and Millbrae, including upgrades to the train control system and associated track projects. Advisory notices highlight that on selected nights and weekends, riders should expect single tracking between Millbrae, SFO, and San Bruno, with delays of 10 to 30 minutes possible throughout the work window.
Similar work in the Transbay Tube and other core segments has already led to frequent weekend and late-evening schedule adjustments in 2026. In the SFO corridor, this planned construction results in thinner train frequencies, longer dwell times at terminal stations, and tight turnarounds that can quickly unravel when any incident occurs on the line.
For airport passengers who often travel with luggage and on time-sensitive itineraries, the combination of reduced frequencies and sudden service suspensions increases the risk of missed flights or disrupted connections. Travel planners frequently advise adding extra time when using BART to reach SFO, and this latest shutdown near the airport will likely reinforce that caution.
Regional travel impact extends beyond BART riders
The closure of BART service near SFO has spillover effects across the wider Bay Area transportation network. When trains are not running into the airport, more travelers turn to the SFO AirTrain people mover, airport parking shuttles, SamTrans buses, and private vehicles to access terminals. Congestion can rise quickly on Highway 101, airport frontage roads, and curbside pickup areas as riders shift away from rail.
In earlier disruptions this week, regional media coverage documented passengers abandoning stalled trains and turning instead to Bay Area ferries and transbay buses to complete their journeys. Similar patterns are likely during any closure of the SFO branch, as riders seek alternative routes between San Francisco, the East Bay, and the Peninsula at short notice.
Caltrain, which connects directly with BART at Millbrae, also plays a role during airport rail outages. Service updates from that operator emphasize that evening and weekend riders may find BART reduced to a limited shuttle between Millbrae and SFO during construction periods. When that connection is suspended entirely because of emergencies, Caltrain riders reaching Millbrae have fewer seamless options for the final segment to the airport.
What BART riders should know before heading to SFO
Travelers planning to use BART to reach San Francisco International Airport in the coming days face a complex and evolving situation. Alongside the immediate closure near SFO, the agency continues with long-running modernization work in the same corridor, as well as periodic single tracking in the Transbay Tube and other parts of the network. Advisory pages stress that service near the airport may be subject to sudden changes, and that delays of 10 to 30 minutes are possible even when trains are running.
Riders are encouraged by publicly available guidance to check BART’s official real-time advisories, trip planner tools, and third-party transit apps before starting airport trips. These services provide line-by-line delay information, station-specific advisories, and notice of any bus bridges or partial line suspensions that may be in effect.
For those connecting from Caltrain at Millbrae or from bus services along the Peninsula, it can be prudent to build in additional buffer time or identify a backup route, such as airport buses or shared-ride options, in case BART service is disrupted. With repeated closures and delays near SFO over recent days, travelers who depend on rail to make flights may want to plan for a more conservative schedule until conditions stabilize.
https://www.bart.gov/schedules/advisories
https://www.bart.gov/news/articles/2026/news20260909
https://www.sfchronicle.com/sf/article/bart-delay-commute-red-line-22423048.php