A record-breaking feat is underway here in the Bay Area. On Sunday 9/6, New Urbanism Initiative and BART are hosting a transitwide speedrun. A group of determined riders will attempt to hit all fifty stations in a single, coordinated trip. Last year, 70 riders set a record for the largest group to make a speedrun on a public transit agency. This year, they’re hoping to shatter that record. New Urbanism Initiative is working directly with BART representatives, who pledged to speak at and attend the event. The speedrun is expected to bring together transit advocates, commuters, BART agents, and fans from around the Bay Area.
The kids are on BART
Fifty stations, 131 miles of track. Starting at Berryessa/North San José, the speedrun will begin at 10:37 AM on an Orange Line train. Participants can complete the entire run or join for part of the journey. Previous attempts, like the Guinness World Record-winning attempt by UC Berkeley Graduate Students, comprised some five to twenty people. The event is a youth-organized effort led by students David Rabinovich and Harvy Chang. Harvy got David to try speedrunning in early 2025 and has since speedrun Muni Metro and SamTrans, his hometown system. Harvy began in 2024 and holds the fastest VTA Light Rail speedrun time; 2nd place for Muni Metro and BART. If anyone can beat last year’s record, it’s these two.
Check out this hella old BART map, pre-SFO extension, pre-Dublin/Pleasanton line.
New Urbanism Initiative is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit advocating for more livable and equitable cities. They build cases from policy research, political advocacy, and civic engagement. NUI advocates effective public transportation, walkable/bikeable streets, affordable housing, and loosening the stranglehold of the oil and automobile industries. They combined forces with the California High School Transit Alliance, which unites student-led transit advocacy clubs statewide. Current Vice President of the CalHSTA: David Rabinovich. David told Broke-Ass Stuart that Speedrun Day was his idea, expanding the speedrunning community through CalHSTA’s mission to boost ridership.
A BART car waits at MacArthur station as part of the legacy fleet’s final run in April 2024. Does anyone else sort of miss that musty corn chip smell?
Fun now for continued service later
Speedrunning BART began gaining popularity in 2025 when the Bay Area Transit Discord Server community started hosting local runs. They made the fastest BART run in May 2024: five hours, thirty minutes, and 26 seconds (5:30:26). The chokepoint: the Oakland Airport Connector, which this editor doesn’t count as part of BART proper (Additional fare? Screw that). It’s an automated peoplemover like SFO’s AirTrain, except it isn’t free, won’t run 24/7, and dumps you in the middle of parking purgatory. And for the purpose of this endeavor, every schedule available for the OAK connector is wrong. I’m petty enough to admire the months of data Harvy Chang aggregated for a realistic schedule from a wildfire-monitoring camera positioned near Oakland Coliseum. This Sunday’s event will mark Harvy’s 50th turn kicking off a BART speedrun.
Join me in wishing a hearty “Fuck you” to the Oakland Airport Connector (an overpriced and overrated peoplemover whose unreliable schedule once made me late for a flight) on my way to the 73. Grudge forever.
Everyone organizing this speedrun feels it is coming at a time when public transportation needs our support the most. Agencies like BART and Muni are facing budgetary shortfalls, resorting to route cuts and reduced service frequency. Meanwhile, the stigma surrounding public transit has drowned out its civic spirit. The hypervisibility of poverty against a wealthy urban backdrop gave transit a reputation for being unsafe, unpleasant; a last resort. Transit-centered activities like the speedrun remind us that taking the train should be fun. The Bay Area is fortunate to have one of the country’s few subway systems.
It is especially inspiring that this push for rekindled interest in public transportation is coming mostly from young people. They are the trendsetters whose obsessions trickle down to us Millennial and Gen-Xer folks. If they kickstart a national demand for more public transit, particularly where it is lacking or absent, others will follow. Additionally, more teens on public transit means fewer on streets and highways—and that’s good news for everyone. Public transportation is also up to 20% safer than driving and significantly less environmentally disruptive. Robinavich, Chang, and their young, pragmatic allies could very well restore public opinion of transit to its former glory.
For now, they’ll work with filling more seats on BART to ensure reliable service continues on our only subway network.
Participating in this record-setting ride is free! If you do want to sign up, RSVP to give organizers an idea of how many guests to expect. The fifty-station tour starts at Berryessa/North San José BART Station on Sunday, September 6. Arrive early to catch special announcements from BART officials and advocacy group representatives. The train departs at 10:37 AM.
Special thanks to Justin at New Urbanism Initiative for bringing our attention to this story!
Local memelord and beloved Broke-Ass Abe Woodliff bedecked in BART garb, holiday edition.
