El Cerrito del Norte station


El Cerrito del Norte is a BART station located off Cutting Boulevard near San Pablo Avenue and Interstate 80 in El Cerrito, California. The station serves as a regional transit hub for local AC Transit bus services, and for commuter feeder services from Solano, Napa, and Marin Counties in the North Bay plus western Contra Costa County. Opened in 1973, the station is undergoing a renovation expected to be completed in 2019.

History

El Cerrito del Norte station opened on January 29, 1973 when service began between MacArthur station and Richmond station. As with El Cerrito Plaza station, the escalator walls feature tile mosaics by Alfonso Pardiñas.
A 2014 study recommending expanding the station paid area, platforms, and vertical logistics to allow more passengers to use the station and decrease dwelling times during congested alighting times. By 2017 the station had more than 9,000 passengers boarding per weekday, exceeding its design capacity. BART approved contracts to begin station expansion that year, with an expected completion in May 2019. work was ongoing.
The station features large parking areas throughout, including surface parking and a four-story parking garage on the east side. There are also reserved bicycle lockers and open air racks available. There is a kiss and ride and taxi zone on the east side of the station. The Ohlone Greenway runs through the station area. This plan determined that parking should be placed closer to the freeway to reduce traffic and that the impact of the large number of buses and area needed for them had to be mitigated in some manner.

Redevelopment

BART developed a station improvement plan in 2004 to create a transit village in the surrounding area. The city of El Cerrito is additionally planning and searching for funds to develop the area around the station as a transit oriented development similar to other transit villages, with the reservation that the development must be appropriately scaled. An apartment complex to be built on a former parking area was approved in 2017.

Bus connections

El Cerrito del Norte station serves as the primary northern bus terminal for the Richmond branch due to its proximity to I-80., there are 29 bus bays that serve six bus agencies for fixed route service and various paratransit and dial-a-ride shuttles. The bus bays are predominantly located on the west side of the station. Many stops have been relocated to surrounding streets during construction.
AC Transit provides local and limited-stop service, plus two commuter routes serving San Francisco:
Five operators provide commuter-oriented express service from western Contra Costa County, Marin County, Napa County, and Solano County: