BART’s popular restroom attendant program expands to El Cerrito del Norte

BART’s busy and recently modernized El Cerrito del Norte Station now has a restroom attendant to greet riders and ensure restrooms remain clean, safe, and accessible to riders. This recent expansion to El Cerrito del Norte has been accomplished without an additional cost to BART’s budget because BART is using existing staff resources, utilizing employees on a temporary modified assignment. 

This is the first time BART is deploying an attendant to an above ground station and the first time BART is using existing BART staff and not a contractor. Previously only underground station restrooms that have been recently reopened to the public included attendants staffed by contracted workers from District Works.  

Seven BART stations now have restroom attendants during all operating hours including Embarcadero, Montgomery, Powell, Lake Merritt, 19th Street Oakland, Downtown Berkeley, and now El Cerrito del Norte. Attendants greet riders, record bathroom usage, check on cleanliness, notify janitors when they are needed, and intervene, if necessary, by calling BART Police.  

When the El Cerrito del Norte Station was modernized, the restrooms were rebuilt with a more open concept with partitions inside and no main door at the entryway. This design, along with the addition of an attendant, has reduced lines to use the restroom. Station Agents can now focus on other customer service assistance instead of needing to check on the restrooms and handle issues related to restrooms being abused.  

BART Director Rebecca Saltzman requested the addition of attendants at El Cerrito del Norte station, “Restroom attendants have proven to discourage unwanted behavior inside restrooms, ensuring they remain open, clean and safe,” said Saltzman. “Since we’ve added an attendant at El Cerrito del Norte, I have personally noticed an improved experience for riders using the restrooms. I want to thank BART leadership for testing this new approach of using existing staff resources to add an attendant to the restroom.”