BART

A $2 trillion federal novel coronavirus stimulus package will include $25 billion in relief funding for public transit agencies across the country, an allocation BART General Manager Bob Powers called "critical lifeline funds" Wednesday. 

BART officials said ridership after 9 p.m. currently represents only 3 percent of the total amount each day, and the agency decided closing early was a better option than running shorter or less frequent trains.

BART will continue regular service during a shelter-in-place order across the Bay Area to mitigate the spread of novel coronavirus, the transit agency announced Monday.

BART ridership continues to plummet amid concerns about COVID-19, the transit agency said Saturday.

The officer in question is BART Officer Joseph Mateu, who was cleared two years ago by the District Attorney's Office following the shooting.

That's a loss of about $600,000 every weekday. 

Bay Area transportation officials are bracing for how they will respond if the coronavirus outbreak gets worse and health officials demand they change protocols and take more drastic steps, including shutting down service.

On the first day of deliberations, the jury has reached a verdict for John Cowell, accused of fatally stabbing Nia Wilson and injuring her sister Letifah on an Oakland BART station platform.

According to a spokesman for the agency, BART ridership from March 2 to March 5 was down 8 percent compared to ridership from Feb. 24 to 27.

BART said it's ridership fell 8% last week due in part to an increase in telecommuting amid the coronavirus outbreak.

An equipment problem on the BART tracks has prompted the closure of train service between the Richmond and El Cerrito Plaza stations Tuesday morning.

Attorneys presented closing arguments Monday in the murder trial of John Cowell in the deadly stabbing of 18-year-old Nia Wilson at an Oakland BART station.

BART released the data last week, showing that black riders received more than half of the citations for "quality of life" offenses, such as fare evasion, disruptive behavior and eating, drinking or smoking on trains, in both 2018 and 2019.

The city says the Irvington District is a historic district with a lot of older buildings, and many industrial businesses.

"Some crazy guy was provoking us,” Alohi Alesana said. “And next thing I know, I had to defend myself. We were fighting in the elevator. He took out his knife and was trying to stab me so I Maced him. I put him down so he wouldn't hurt any of us."

For most of his murder trial, John Lee Cowell has refused to come to court. On Thursday before the defense rested its case, they called more witnesses to the stand. One of those witnesses spoke out in Cowell’s defense.  

Here's information on what's changed during BART's Sunday train service.

Two officers fired shots at a man armed with a gun. The man, who has not been identified, is expected to survive, the transit agency said Sunday morning.