Comment on your first point - If BART’s share of the new gate’s price (likely stretched over 5-10 years) is less than lost fairs retrieved the cost is justified. Quickly clicking through the Iinked articles I could not find a breakdown of either number.
Also, the collected fair is around 50% of BART’s budget. It is easier to get govt agencies to kick in once towards this project than increase their yearly contribution.
If I recall correctly most other large transit systems in the US have the collected fair contributing around 25% of the overall budget. BART relies on collected fairs more than any other large transit system in the US.
Comment on your first point - If BART’s share of the new gate’s price (likely stretched over 5-10 years) is less than lost fairs retrieved the cost is justified. Quickly clicking through the Iinked articles I could not find a breakdown of either number.
Also, the collected fair is around 50% of BART’s budget. It is easier to get govt agencies to kick in once towards this project than increase their yearly contribution.
If I recall correctly most other large transit systems in the US have the collected fair contributing around 25% of the overall budget. BART relies on collected fairs more than any other large transit system in the US.