Around the Bay this Weekend: Big musical acts, a beer fest, and bike party
Friday, Oct. 13 – Last weekend, BART riders set a record for post-pandemic Saturday ridership, taking 116,200 trips. That’s 72% of our average Saturday ridership prior to the pandemic. Fantastic!
This weekend, big musical acts come to town, including P!nk on Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 14 and 15, at the Chase Center, and Maneskin on Friday, Oct. 13, at the Oakland Arena.
But the events don’t stop there. This weekend, you can ride along with the East Bay Bike Party, BART to Walnut Creek for Oktoberfest, head to Richmond for a Spirit and Soul Festival, and commune with book lovers at San Francisco’s annual literary festival Litquake. Keep reading...
Bus bridge alert: On Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 14 and 15, free buses will replace trains between Pleasant Hill and Concord stations as part of BART’s ongoing safety initiative to remove potentially hazardous trees in advance of severe winter storms. BART riders in the area should anticipate delays of up to 30 minutes on work weekends will have to disembark their train at either Pleasant Hill or Concord and then board a free bus provided by County Connection to the next station in their direction of travel to continue their trip. More info here.
For an in-depth listing of local events, visit the BARTable website. We publish a weekly event roundup, BARTable This Weekend, that highlights happenings around the region as well as cool contests and sweepstakes from our partners.
Friday, Oct. 13: East Bay Bike Party
East Bay Bike Party gets spooky on Friday with its monthly mobile party that invites riders of all ages to hit the streets and ride with each other. The theme this month is “zombie western,” so attire yourself accordingly. The group will gather at 7:30pm outside MacArthur Station for a 10 to 15-mile ride concluding at Downtown Berkeley Station with stops along the way.
Friday and Saturday, Oct. 13 and 14: Walnut Creek Obktoberfest
This weekend, Walnut Creek’s celebrates Oktoberfest in Civic Park. Enjoy a drink in the biergarten or hit the dance floor as the city recreates the beloved German fall celebration with live entertainment, gourmet food, vendors, and a Kinder Platz Kids Zone. Take BART to Walnut Creek Station and walk 0.6 miles to Civic Park.
Friday, Oct. 13, through Saturday, Oct. 21: Litquake 2023
San Francisco’s beloved literary festival Litquake is here once again! The festival hosts events across the city, culminating with a giant Lit Crawl (think bar crawl but for literature) on Saturday, Oct. 21. Check out some of the cool programs happening throughout the weekend and beyond, many of which are accessible by BART!
Saturday, Oct. 14: Richmond Spirit and Soul Festival
From 11am to 4pm on Saturday, the City of Richmond hosts a free street festival downtown that’s good for one’s mind and body. You’ll find food, workshops, arts and crafts, and short workouts, among other revitalizing activities. Take BART to Richmond Station and walk just under a mile to 190 Macdonald Avenue.
Weekend Read: BART intern Erik Huizar’s mission to increase accessibility for BART’s blind and low-vision riders
Nineteen-year-old BART intern Erik Huizar is currently working to write descriptive reports of the tactile guideways around the BART system. These guideways help blind and low-vision riders like Erik navigate BART independently.
“People rely on these trains, and not just people like me who can’t get around without them, but sighted people, too, who use them to visit friends and family or to get to work,” Erik said. “Without buses, without trains, many people wouldn’t be able to do that.”
Some of these reports have been uploaded to the BART Low Vision or Blind Accessible Services webpage and more will be added in the coming months.
Cheers to Erik!
Sweepstakes Spotlight: Win an individual membership to SFMOMA
Enter to win an individual membership to SFMOMA and unlock extraordinary access to 7 floors of awe-inspiring art, special exhibitions like "Yayoi Kusama: Infinite Love," and the first retrospective of Pacita Abad. Two winners will be selected on Monday, Oct. 16, 2023, so submit your entry before then. Find more great sweepstakes on BARTable’s Contests and Deals page.
Happy Riding this Weekend!
We hope you enjoy your weekend adventures aboard our trains.
Stay in touch by signing up for the BARTable This Weekend newsletter on the BARTable website – your one-stop shop for all things accessible by BART. You can also keep up with BARTable on Facebook and Instagram.
BART intern Erik Huizar poses for a portrait at Union City Station on Wednesday, Sept. 6, 2023.