WALNUT CREEK, CA — BART Police wants drones that can launch automatically from docking stations, rush toward trespassers and other high-priority incidents, and stream aerial images to officers responding on the ground.
The agency is asking the BART Board of Directors to approve a no-cost pilot lasting up to 180 days.
The pilot would initially deploy drones at the Bay Fair and Hayward stations to patrol roughly 3.5 miles of track between them, according to documents submitted to the board.
BART says thieves and vandals have targeted critical infrastructure along the corridor. But the agency released few details in their proposal to the board.
The aircraft could follow preprogrammed routes or be operated remotely. Cameras and other sensors could collect video, audio, still images, geolocation information, and sensor data, according to BART's surveillance impact report.
"Drones deliver a vital aerial perspective while providing situational awareness and improving officer safety," according to the report.
BART says drones could help officers investigate crime, locate trespassers, assess damaged infrastructure, detect overheating third-rail components, inspect difficult or dangerous locations, and reopen tracks more quickly after disruptions. The aircraft could also identify animals, fallen trees, debris, and other hazards.
No figures were included in the proposal about the extent to which these are problems for the agency that would warrant new equipment.
A BART spokesperson, Alicia Trost, identified a 2024 incident in which fiber-optic cable that the transit agency's train-control system relies on was damaged, causing at least two major service disruptions on the Bay Fair-Hayward line. A similar incident, also considered vandalism, shut down lines in 2025.
It is not clear from the proposal to the board how drones would prevent vandalism in the future.
Although the pilot identifies the Bay Fair-Hayward corridor as its initial patrol area, BART's proposed district-wide use policy authorizes far broader operations.
The policy would allow BART to deploy drones to execute search and arrest warrants and respond to emergency calls.
It would also authorize their use for a wide range of cases including crime-scene documentation, search and rescue, counterterrorism, crowd control, special-event security, maintenance, engineering inspections, capital projects, emergency management, public relations, community outreach, press functions, and recruiting.
BART Police could launch drones without the pre-mission approval required of other departments.
In emergencies, other BART departments could also bypass that approval when officials determine that a deployment is immediately necessary to protect human life, public safety, transit infrastructure, or district property.
The policy would prohibit generalized or random surveillance unrelated to an authorized use. But it is unclear how BART defines the destinction.
Similarly, the policy would ban facial recognition, biometric collection, automated license-plate readers, harassment, intimidation, discrimination, personal business, and activity that violates the Fourth Amendment or other laws, according to the proposal documents.
Authorized BART Police personnel, the Office of the Independent Police Auditor, the Operational Control Center, maintenance, engineering, and safety employees, BART management, and the Office of General Counsel could access drone recordings.
BART would generally retain video, audio, photographs, and other drone media for one year.
The district could keep the material longer under a number of exemptions.
Evidence collected by BART Police would move into the department's evidence or records-management system and follow the retention period assigned to its classification.
Third-party vendors could store evidence on their platforms and examine log files and image data while troubleshooting errors and system failures.
The proposed policy says BART could not share drone information with third parties without the police chief's written consent unless the law requires disclosure.
Vendors or technology partners would provide demonstrations, equipment, evaluations, and training without charging BART during the pilot.
Neither the impact report nor the use policy identifies a vendor, drone manufacturer, aircraft model, or permanent program cost.
A no-cost trial would start the program. Participation would not commit the district to buying equipment, software, services, or support.
The impact report also warns that other agencies have encountered crashes, signal loss, GPS interference, weather-related grounding, battery problems, and growing expenses for training, maintenance, software, storage, sensors, cybersecurity, and federal aviation compliance.
BART currently relies on helicopters and drones from regional partners, including the Oakland and San Francisco police departments.
The district says those aircraft carry high operating costs, may respond slowly or become unavailable during competing emergencies, and cannot perform some interior or low-altitude operations.
Chief Kevin Franklin formally notified directors of the proposal in a Sept. 4 memorandum. The board's Oct. 8 vote would cover both the district-wide use policy and the pilot project's surveillance impact report.
The BART board is scheduled to consider the proposal Oct. 8.
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