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Al Franz juggling at Castro Valley Station during a Tuesday evening meetup in July.

“It’s fun, it’s social, we juggle.”

Those six words, spoken by juggler Tony Flusche, provide a neat summary of the Castro Valley Jugglers Association’s group agreements, if the CVJA had formal agreements. 

A good motto for a juggler’s physicality might be loosey-goosey; you’ve got to keep your body and mind focused and relaxed when you’re lobbing balls and clubs (the props that look like bowling pins) and flaming torches into the air (and over people’s heads) then catching them. 

It’s also an apt motto for a group of jugglers who’ve been meeting informally to practice and swap clubs at Castro Valley Station for just about two decades. The association meets every single week in the free area of the station – under the rotunda – from 6pm to 8:30pm or so. Members of the group – before they began practicing at Castro Valley Station – performed at the station’s official opening in 1997. 

“Sometimes we get up to 30 people at a session; sometimes no one shows up at all,” said juggler James Johnson. “Sometimes we’re the Castro Valley Sit and Gab Association.”

Johnson is a former student of Louis Kruk, a longtime Physical Education teacher at Canyon Middle School in Castro Valley. He’s the main throughline that connects this ragtag group of juggling fiends. 

Louis Kruk is pictured juggling at Castro Valley Station during a Tuesday evening meetup in July. 

When he was a middle school teacher, Kruk would interject a juggling unit between more traditional sporting units, like football and volleyball. He himself learned to juggle after he was gifted the classic instructional book Juggling for the Complete Klutz on a snowy Christmas in Tahoe many decades ago (The Klutz book, still in print, released its 30th anniversary edition in 2007). 

The thing about juggling is it’s best to do with other people. Alone, you can toss the balls up and down, up and down, add and subtract clubs, and introduce certain elements, like unicycles or fire. But in the company of others, you can practice different, complex patterns. 

“Passing clubs is the social activity of jugglers,” Kruk said. “I can stay home and juggle, or I can come here and pass clubs. If you mess up in a weird way, we’ll still have fun with that.”

On some Tuesday evenings after school, Kruk would open the school gym to students and local adults who wanted to juggle with each other. Kruk, now 78 and long retired, said he was selfishly motivated in some ways; he wanted folks to pass clubs with, too. At these meetups, if you didn’t know how to juggle already, people would teach you the basics and then integrate you into their passing patterns.

After Kruk retired, school administrators wanted him to start renting the gym more formally. So, he decided to change venues. Castro Valley Station was the ideal spot: easy to get to, centrally located, well-lit, and protected from the elements, including every juggler’s kryptonite – wind. 

“Look at this place, it could be pouring down rain and you can still juggle,” he said. 

The jugglers not only entertain riders – and are careful to stay safely out of the way of people entering and exiting the station – but serve as an extra set of ears and eyes for the Station Agent on duty, Kruk said. 

Norman Hollis, a BART System Service Worker stationed at Castro Valley, is fond of the jugglers himself. 

“They’re here every Tuesday. It’s truly amazing what they do,” he said. “It brings the community together; a lot of people stop to watch.”

A rider leaving Castro Valley Station stops to watch the jugglers on a Tuesday evening meetup in July. 

On this particular Tuesday, the group began with three men. They warmed up with a basic four count – 1 2 3 4, 1 2 3 4, 1 2 3 4 – and then practiced their two counts. As the clubs flew overhead, hand to hand, they melted into a sort of cosmic mush in which it was no longer clear which club came from where and whose hand. When one juggler dropped a club, the rest of the jugglers kept on, adapting the pattern until the juggler who dropped could jump back in. Throughout, the group made casual conversation, often swapping barbs of the dad-joke ilk. 

The light plastic clubs look like Space Age versions of the wooden club Bamm-Bamm Rubble tosses over his shoulder in The Flintstones. When the clubs hit the ground, which they inevitably do, they bounce and make a sort of hollow clang sound. Members of BART Communications were assured the clubs do not hurt if they land on you (assurances we were given before we were conscripted to briefly stand in the center of a juggling pattern, clubs whirling past our heads). 

Jugglers toss clubs around a willing member of BART Communications at Castro Valley Station during a Tuesday evening meetup in July.

“Y’all comfortable with Havana?” one juggler asked the small group. They got into formation: three jugglers standing on one side with one facing them. Then they rotated around each other as if waltzing, tossing clubs all the while. 

A few minutes into the practice session, another juggler appeared. 

“Ray, get your clubs out,” barked Flusche. "Now we can do a star.” 

By 6:30pm, six jugglers had shown up. It’s decided they will practice a “sweep feed,” where a feeder passes each feedee a club along the line from left to right then right to left – you sort of have to see it to get it. 

“At parades, we do this with torches!” said Flusche, the consummate showman of the group. 

Tony Flusche is pictured juggling at Castro Valley Station during a Tuesday evening meetup in July.

Flusche joined the association in 1995 after meeting Kruk through a juggling course he was teaching at Castro Valley Adult School. Flusche pointed out that many of the jugglers’ bonds run deep. For example, “Joe and I unicycle together,” he said. 

Johnson, Kruk’s former middle school student, said he found juggling during a college speech class, in which the teacher demonstrated informative speech by giving a talk on how to juggle. The class then juggled.

Fastforward some years, and Johnson finds himself with an Australian cattle dog that likes to run. He buys the dog a pack of 47 tennis balls and takes him to the park, passing the time by tossing the balls for a fetch and juggling them, too. (“Tennis balls are terrible to juggle with,” he noted).

One day, a neighbor came over and said, “I’ve seen you juggling...you should check out this group.” So, Johnson did, only to find out it was run by Kruk. 

“I was terrified of him! Sports were not my thing in school,” Johnson said of his former teacher. The two have now set aside their sporting differences.

James Johnson is pictured juggling at Castro Valley Station during a Tuesday evening meetup in July.

Another juggler in attendance was Bob Mendelsohn, a former pro-juggler who hasn’t “been a pro juggler in this century,” he said. He revealed he once juggled on a unicycle around the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. He juggles just for fun now. 

The swashbuckling cast of characters are obviously unified by a singular passion – a singular passion that’s best shared with others. There is plenty of room for jugglers in the group, seasoned or klutzy, he added. 

“I’ll start a pattern with any juggler who shows up. If you’re passing by, I might ask you to join us, too,” Kruk said. “Even if you don’t have great skill, we can always find a spot for you."

Riders using Embarcadero Station now have a safer, cleaner way to enter the station thanks to a recently opened canopy protecting the entrance near Beale St. Two canopies are now complete at Embarcadero while work on two more is underway. It’s all part of a project to build 19 canopies over entrances at BART stations along Market St. in downtown San Francisco.  This is in addition to two canopies previously constructed under a pilot project for a total of 21 canopies.

The newly installed canopy at Embarcadero is designed to enhance the station's aesthetic appeal while providing practical benefits. By offering protection from the elements, such as rain and harsh sunlight, the canopy ensures greater comfort and convenience for passengers navigating the station's entrances and exits.

The canopies are also intended to protect new escalators that will be built at the stations as part of separate project to refurbish/replace 41 escalators with more modern, reliable units. 

The well-lit and spacious design of the canopy contributes to enhanced safety and visibility, fostering a sense of security for travelers, especially during nighttime hours.

The project to install canopies is funded by voter approved Measure RR funds, San Francisco Prop A funds, and state Prop 1A funds.

Starting Tuesday, October 29th, there will be temporary and permanent traffic circulation changes (see maps) impacting the south driveway on Martin Luther King Jr. Way (MLK Jr. Way). This is part of ongoing work on the bicycle connector project, which will formalize bicycle circulation in and out of the Adeline St. driveway.

For drivers: 

• The south MLK Jr. Way driveway will be closed fully for approximately two weeks. Once re-opened, the driveway will be permanently one-way only for drivers entering the station. The north driveway will remain open in both directions. 
• The driveway to Adeline St. will remain closed until the end of the project, currently planned for completion by the end of the year. 

For bicyclists: 

• The south MLK Jr. Way driveway will be closed fully for approximately two weeks. Once re-opened, the driveway will include a two-way bikeway between the station and MLK Jr. Way 
• The driveway to Adeline St. will remain closed until the end of the project, currently planned for completion by the end of the year. 
• Once completed, the new bicycle facility will provide a connection between Adeline Street and MLK Jr. Way through the BART parking lot, formalizing bicycle circulation in and out of the Adeline Street driveway. 

Thank you for your patience as we complete this important work.

Work is scheduled to begin on October 23, 2023, on the cycle-track on roadway on the backside of North Berkeley Station Plaza between Virginia Street and Delaware Street (“West Drive"). This is the latest step for the North Berkeley Access Improvements Project. Construction impacts will include the following:

• Crews will be grinding the existing roadway markings and striping a new two-way cycle track on the west side of the road. They will route drivers around the work area as needed.
• Once the cycle-track is completed, the roadway will be converted from two-way to one-way operation northbound (from Delaware Street to Virginia Street), so drivers will no longer be able to turn in to the road from Virginia Street (see map). Drivers will still be able to access the west parking lot from Acton Street and from Delaware Street via northbound West Drive.
• All drivers exiting the west parking lots will exit west onto Acton Street or north onto Virginia Street. 

Most work will be carried out between 7am and 3pm with occasional weekend work.

The project includes bicycle and pedestrian access improvements in the satellite parking lots to the northwest of the station as well as the main station area. For questions, comments and details of the scope of work, visit bart.gov/nberkeleybike. 

Thank you for your patience as we complete this important work.

The elevator at Bay Fair Station will be taken out of service from Monday, April 15, 2024 through Friday, April 19, 2024 for emergency repair of a failing tank unit. 

This is the only elevator at Bay Fair Station. Riders who rely on the elevator will not be able to access the platform from the street level, nor exit the Bay Fair platform to get to street level via the elevator during the above referenced time frame.

We recommend riders use the San Leandro Station or Hayward Station as alternatives. San Leandro Station is 3.7 miles away from Bay Fair Station, while Hayward Station is 3.4 miles away. Riders can use AC Transit to travel between San Leandro, Bay Fair and Hayward stations. Riders can consult the trip planner at www.ACTransit.org for specific bus line information and schedules. To check if an elevator is in service before arriving at a station, please call 510-834-LIFT (510-834-5438) or 888-2-ELEVAT (888-235-3828), or sign up for elevator status alerts at www.bart.gov/elevators.

If you arrive at any station and find that the elevator(s) are out of service, you may contact a Station Agent to arrange for a lift van to take you to a nearby station with a working elevator.

We apologize for this inconvenience and appreciate your patience.

The multiple construction projects underway at Montgomery St. Station are delivering a couple of big improvements to riders as November heads into December.

On Wednesday, November 27, 2024, a completely rebuilt escalator that connects the platform to the concourse levels opened for service, the fourth such escalator at this station to be replaced. Just one more platform escalator at Montgomery St. needs to be rebuilt. It’s the unit next to the newly opened escalator, at the eastern end of the station. 

The new escalators incorporate the latest technology with multiple improvements to enhance rider safety and escalator reliability. A key provision of the program requires the contractor to maintain a reliability rate of at least 96% for the new escalators during the life of the nearly ten-year contract. 

Just a couple of days before the platform escalator opened, a new canopy opened over the entrance at Sutter and Sansome Streets at the north side of Montgomery St. The canopies are an important facet of transforming downtown San Francisco BART entrances. 

The canopies will not only protect new escalators from the wear-and-tear of elements like rain and wind-swept debris, but they will provide an added layer of station security and cleanliness through motorized gates that allow the entrances to be locked at street level when stations are closed. 

Each canopy includes a real-time digital display that shows train arrival times, a retractable gate, LED lighting and security cameras.

Starting on Monday, August 26, construction will begin in the bus area at Richmond Station for two separate projects - both projects will be making improvements to support accessibility for people with disabilities in the bus area and on the Amtrak train platform. 

In the first phase of this work, which will take approximately 3 weeks, about half of the bus routes will change location within the bus area, and some crosswalks and sidewalk sections will be closed. 

Bus Stop numbers will be used to provide information on the location of your bus, please check the table and map below for the location of your bus route and pedestrian detours. Bus routes that will change location are noted with "new location" message.

Bus Stop locations: 

When approaching the bus area from inside the train station, 

Bus Stops A1 and A2 are on the first bus island across from the plaza

• Pedestrian detour: Access these stops by crossing the temporary diagonal crosswalk to the B stops, and then crossing the temporary crosswalk at Bus Stop B2 

Bus Stops B1 and B2 are on the second bus island. 

• Pedestrian detour: A temporary diagonal crosswalk will be installed to access these stops directly from the plaza. 
• Bus Stop B2 will be closed for construction and for a temporary crosswalk to Stops A1 and A2

Bus Stops C1 and C2 are to the left of the plaza along the fence

Bus Stops C3, C4, and C5 are along the far edge of the bus area, parallel to MacDonald Ave

Pedestrian detour: Access these stops by turning right toward the garage, and walking south towards MacDonald Ave. Then turn left to cross the station driveway. From this direction Bus Stop C5 is the first stop, Bus Stop C4 is the second. Bus Stop C3 is closed. 

Bay Area transit’s ongoing transformation into a more connected, more efficient and more customer-focused mobility network today took another big step forward as transit agency and Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) staff have unveiled design prototypes for a common set of signs to be used by all agencies at all locations — from individual bus stops to major hubs where multiple systems connect. These prototypes will be installed later this year at the El Cerrito del Norte BART station, the Santa Rosa Transit Mall and the nearby Santa Rosa SMART station.

To establish and reinforce a common identity for all Bay Area transit services, the new signage employs a three-color palette of golden yellow, sky blue and dark blue; as well as simple icons to identify service by trains, buses or ferries. These icons are larger and more visually prominent than the logos of the individual agencies providing the services at each location. The modal icons and the three-color palette will be extended to a new mobile-friendly website to which passengers can connect via QR codes at each bus stop, train station or ferry terminal, providing real-time information along with accessibility features such as audio descriptions and language translation.

More than 90 percent of Bay Area residents polled by MTC in 2021 identified uniform and easy-to-use transit maps and signage as an important priority for improving the region’s transit network. MTC’s Operations Committee in 2022 approved a contract with Applied Wayfinding Inc. to develop a single mapping and wayfinding system for use by all Bay Area transit agencies. Applied has completed similar projects in London; Toronto; Seattle; Cleveland; Vancouver, B.C.; and elsewhere. The design concepts incorporate comments and recommendations from more than 1,000 Bay Area residents — including transit riders and nonriders, people with limited English proficiency and people with disabilities — who participated in MTC-sponsored surveys, workshops and focus groups. New transit signage will include tactile and Braille elements.

The golden yellow in the three-color palette developed by transit agencies, MTC and the design contractor was chosen to represent the Bay Area’s sunshine and golden hills, with the light blue representing clear skies and the dark blue representing San Francisco Bay, lakes, rivers and other bodies of water. MTC and its partners will invite Bay Area residents and visitors alike to share their thoughts about the newly designed transit signs and digital wayfinding tools once the prototypes — which have not yet been fabricated — are installed at the Santa Rosa and El Cerrito locations.

Design prototypes for a consistent set of transit maps will be unveiled later this year. 

Learn more about the project. 

View the MTC presentation.