Bay Area Rapid Transit – Patty Angus – 2024

SummaryPatty Angus developed strategic initiatives to enhance environmental justice (EJ) and sustainability at BART.GoalsBART is developing its 2025 Sustainability Action Plan to define its sustainability priorities from 2026 through 2035. A particular focus in the Plan will be to incorporate environmental justice best practices throughout BART’s operations. BART enlisted Patty to analyze BART’s current performance and devise actionable EJ-related goals that will amplify accessibility of the system, increase engagement with disadvantaged communities, encourage equity in infrastructure development, and improve environmental stewardship.SolutionsPatty spearheaded the following tasks to complete her project:

– Review the prior Sustainability Action Plan and identify strengths and gaps in BART’s approach toward environmental justice.
– Conduct research on environmental justice best practices in transit agencies and other organizations
– Identify and interview key stakeholders at BART to understand goals, priorities, and challenges across the agency.
– Synthesize information into actionable goals and metrics that will guide BART’s efforts going forward.Potential ImpactUsing the information gleaned from her research and interviews, Patty drafted 12 action items and 6 metrics related to:

– Prioritizing EV charging stations in marginalized areas
– Initiating energy audits for efficiency improvements
– Upgrading water fixtures for conservation
– Advocating economic inclusivity via disadvantaged business participation
– Enhancing infrastructure resilience to weather impacts
These actions and metrics are designed to help reduce environmental burdens while supporting equity and benefit for all communities, particularly those that are historically underserved. They will be included as goals in BART’s 2025 Sustainability Action, and they will serve as public commitments and tracking mechanisms that ensure EJ is central to BART’s operations.