The Transbay Joint Powers Authority (TJPA) officially opened its new Salesforce Transit Center with inaugural Transbay bus service by AC Transit and others. In the future, the Transit Center will link to eleven transit systems, and high-speed rail.
The transit center replaces the seismically deficient Transbay Terminal with a modern regional transportation hub connecting transit systems throughout the Bay Area. It includes a 5.4-acre rooftop public park programmed with year-round free activities, a public art program, and 100,000 square feet of shopping and dining.
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At one million square feet, the center stretches four blocks with four stories above ground and two stories below. The transit center will help ease traffic congestion, reduce pollution, and make transit easier and more efficient.
Planning and design is underway for Phase 2; a 1.3-mile Downtown Rail Extension that will bring Caltrain from its current terminus at Fourth and King to the transit center. The center will also be the northern terminus for California’s high-speed rail system.
With more than 600 trees and 16,000 plants incorporated into its rooftop park, the Transit Center's ecosystem will capture 12 tons of carbon annually.
The Transit Center will also reduce greenhouse gas emissions significantly. The annual energy consumption is projected to be 50% lower than the 2008 Title 24 Energy Efficiency Standards. Its associated carbon emissions will be reduced by approximately 40%.
Additionally, the Transit Center’s roof, by virtue of having the park, retains and reuses storm water that would otherwise flow into sewers. The building’s water reuse system is among the first of its kind in San Francisco. It is also the first project in San Francisco with a rooftop wetland filtration system. This will save 13.9 million gallons of water and 17,000 tons of carbon dioxide each year due to water conservation and reuse.
The project is on track to receive a Gold certification under the LEED 2009 rating system.
The center is owned and operated by the TJPA, managed by Lincoln Property Co., and designed by award-winning Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects. It was built by Webcor-Obayashi Joint Venture.
The region’s fixed-route system finished out the year with a total of 373.5 million rides. Adding 12.3 million rides over 2024 represents an increase that is equal to the annual transit ridership of Kansas City.
The service is a flexible, reservation-based transit service designed to close the first- and last-mile gaps and connect riders to employment for just $5 per day.
The upgraded system, which went live earlier this month, supports METRO’s METRONow vision to enhance the customer experience, improve service reliability, and strengthen long-term regional mobility.
The agreement provides competitive wages and reflects strong labor-management collaboration, positive working relationships, and a shared commitment to building a world-class transit system for the community, said RTA CEO Lona Edwards Hankins.
The priorities are outlined in the 2026 Board and CEO Initiatives and Action Plan, which serves as a roadmap to guide the agency’s work throughout the year and ensure continued progress and accountability on voter-approved transportation investments and essential mobility services.
