BART train brakes overheat, leading to delays, confusion in Transbay Tube during Friday evening commute

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — A frightening evening commute left some BART riders stranded and re-routed for hours Friday after smoke filled a Transbay Tube.

Photos and video shared with ABC7 News show the train filling with smoke around 5:30 p.m. beneath the Bay Bridge. Riders dropped to the floor, many covering their noses as the train came to a halt.

At Embarcadero Station, crowds of commuters packed the platform. Outside, San Francisco firefighters worked with Oakland crews on the other side of the tube. Officials say the cause was overheated brake, but no fire.

“What it ended up being was the brakes on a BART train heated up. It caught on fire and left residual smoke in the tube,” said Lt. Mariano Elias with the San Francisco Fire Department. “Once we arrived, we determined there was no actual fire- traffic stopped in both directions unfortunately on a Friday commute. It wasn’t good for those folks heading home.”

ABC7 News caught up with several commuters at the West Oakland BART station. Many there were waiting for trains to resume or detoured on buses, saying it took two to three hours.

San Francisco resident and singer “North Tay” said he made multiple stops trying to get back into San Francisco for a performance.

“I was on the train station platform coming from North Berkeley. I made it to West Oakland,” explained North Tay. “And then they told us to transfer to the Berryessa train. Then they ended up telling us that train was cancelled. They put us on a train for SFO airport. That train got canceled, too.”

Joshua Evans and his colleague Ashish Pyala were trying to get home from San Francisco to West Dublin.

“Usually we just take the Muni, get on BART at Embarcadero and go straight to West Oakland,” said Pyala. “Today we got off Civic Center, took an Uber here to West Oakland. Now we have to take a bus from here to Fruitvale. After that I think the BART starts moving.”

“Fire trucks everywhere, cops everywhere, people confused everywhere,” said Evans of their experience at Embarcadero. “Hopped in an Uber, $42 later, we’re here now thinking we’re good. Apparently, we’re not. I don’t know.”

By 8:30 p.m., BART said service was back on track, though delays continued into the night.

Some commuters joked about the chaos, while others said the shared experience brought a rare moment of unity.

“I’m tired,” said Evans, with an exacerbated chuckle. “It’s a mess, but it be like that sometimes.”

“Honestly at first, it looked like it was going to be a little chaotic. Then a supervisor stepped in and this woman right here, did her job really efficiently,” praised North Tay, while also commending his fellow riders. “When I see stuff like this, it gives me hope that there’s real unity in this city.”