San Francisco Bay Area comes to a standstill as computer error shuts down entire BART train system

San Francisco Bay Area residents faced a difficult commute on Friday morning due to a systemwide shutdown of Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART). The shutdown was caused by a computer networking problem affecting train control, and all 50 stations were closed at 4:24 a.m. Technicians were working to resolve the issue, which was expected to cause major delays. This was not an isolated incident, as the last time it happened, it took several hours to resolve. The shutdown left tens of thousands of commuters looking for alternative ways to get to work, causing congestion on Bay Area freeways. The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency assisted passengers at some BART stations, and the San Francisco Bay Ferry ran larger ferries from the North and East Bay. BART typically serves around 170,000 area residents on weekdays, although ridership has been reduced by half since the COVID-19 pandemic. As of Friday morning, BART said that train service had resumed, but with major delays. The cause of the computer networking problem was still unknown. The shutdown was working to get to the bottom of the situation.