What a spokesperson described as a computer upgrade gone wrong paralyzed BART on Friday, leaving thousands of morning commuters stranded for hours until service resumed.
All BART stations were open and trains running normally for the Friday evening commute, the transit agency said.
Starting at 4:30 a.m., issues arose with computer equipment following overnight upgrades and prevented the start of morning service, BART chief spokesperson Alicia Trost said.
Before service resumed, in downtown Oakland frustrated commuters kept attempting to refresh their phones for any new updates. Those who attempted to enter the 19th Street BART station were redirected by staff members to look for alternative modes of transportation.
Transbay commuter Kristy Johnson attempted to arrange a carpool with friends to no avail. She said she tried to take the Alameda-Contra Costa Transit transbay bus from the downtown transit center, but they were so full that the drivers wouldn’t allow anyone else aboard.
Other riders like Michael Rodriguez said he was thinking about taking the San Francisco Bay Ferry from Oakland’s Jack London terminal, but he thought it would be at capacity and a waste of time.
At one AC Transit bus stop that was overflowing with passengers attempting to secure a spot onboard, some riders felt the scenario was unreal.
“It feels like a cyber-attack. Like what does it take to shut down an entire system, I’ve never heard of that,” said Lindsey Shepard.
“So much for a nice end to the week. I ride because it is calm and easy, but this is not great,” said Tim Kuan.
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