Bay Area transit riders are gearing up to ride every single BART station in one shot this Sunday, in a six-hour marathon meant to mark California Speedrun Day and BART's 54th anniversary. The event kicks off at Berryessa/North San Jose Station at 10:20 a.m., where participants will catch a 10:37 a.m. Orange Line train and wind through all 50 stations and 131 miles of track before wrapping up at Antioch Station around 4:32 p.m.
The route was posted by BART on social media, which described a schedule built by speedrunning enthusiasts and noted that riders don't have to commit to the entire loop — they can join for the whole ride or hop on for just a portion of it. According to Secret San Francisco, the six-hour journey spans all six BART lines, and anyone planning to ride along should make sure they have at least $12.15 loaded onto their Clipper card before boarding.
This year's run is co-hosted by the student-led California High School Transit Alliance and the New Urbanism Initiative in partnership with BART, per the transit agency's own announcement. The California High School Transit Alliance was formed by high school transit clubs across the state to push for public transportation access and student mobility, a detail that underscores how youth advocacy has become central to the event's identity.
Speedrun the BART System to celebrate California Speedrun Day.
— BART (@SFBART) September 1, 2026
The schedule has been created by speedrunning pros and will take around 6 hours, with special appearances by BART representatives. Join for the whole ride or hop on for a portion. https://t.co/SOPwAnOOS1
From Internet Hobby to Official BART Tradition
Transit speedrunning didn't start as an agency-sanctioned event. BART has logged more than 25 official and community speedrun attempts across its system since 2012, and the activity has its own dedicated webpage and Discord server where BART archives attempts, rules, and leaderboards. The sport gained global recognition in March 2024, when seven UC Berkeley graduate students from the Transportation Graduate Students Organizing Committee set the official Guinness World Record for fastest BART system speedrun at 5 hours, 47 minutes, and 42 seconds, a feat detailed by Berkeleyside that required continuous video footage and witness logs throughout the trip.
An even faster unofficial time exists, though it came with controversy. As reported by KQED, a YouTube creator and a high school transit advocate posted an unofficial time of 5 hours, 9 minutes, and 35 seconds in October 2024 by making out-of-order transfers and using bicycles between stations — a strategy that stirred debate among transit speedrunning purists. Sunday's event isn't chasing that record; organizers are framing it around group participation and regional exploration rather than pure speed.
Last year's speedrun drew 70 participants, which organizers believed at the time to be the largest group ever to speedrun a transit system, according to BART. This year, organizers are hoping to beat that turnout record.
Why BART Is Leaning Into the Trend
BART's embrace of speedrunning as a public relations tool has been deliberate. Per PR Daily, BART Chief Communications Officer Alicia Trost spearheaded the strategy after spotting student speedrunners on social media and recognizing an opportunity to generate earned media by highlighting their accomplishments. The agency has since launched a dedicated Discord server and podcast episodes aimed at countering negative transit narratives and showcasing system efficiency to younger riders.
Sunday's ride will feature special appearances by BART representatives along the route, and it doubles as the flagship activity of the 11th annual Bay Area Transit Month, co-organized by San Francisco Transit Riders and Seamless Bay Area. Transit Month runs throughout September and includes dozens of free educational, social, and promotional events across nine Bay Area counties, the transit agency notes.
A Statewide Push, and a Chance to Win Prizes
The BART speedrun is also tied into California Speedrun Day, a statewide Transit Month initiative that coordinates mass speedruns on rail networks across Northern and Southern California, including BART and the San Diego Trolley. Student organizers set up the simultaneous events to promote passenger rail as an essential and engaging mobility option for young people who don't drive, according to the California High School Transit Alliance.
Riders who want to participate beyond Sunday's event can also sign up for the 2026 Transit Month Ride Contest, which invites participants to log public transit trips between September 1 and September 30 at ridecontest.com. The contest offers badges, a leaderboard competition, and prizes, including a spot riding the BART mobile during a 2027 parade and a BART Legacy Fleet HO scale model train. Last year's statewide version of the contest drew nearly 1,000 contestants who logged almost 200,000 miles on regional public transit combined.
