On December 14, 2019, it finally happened — the long-awaited extension of Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit, or the SMART train, to its southern terminus in Larkspur opened. This connection was intended to finally bridge the gap in rapid transit service between San Francisco, Marin, and Sonoma counties, enabling riders to transfer seamlessly between San Francisco-bound Golden Gate Ferries and the SMART train, bypassing traffic on Highway 101.
Though the station opened to much fanfare and celebration, the new Larkspur SMART station design a cautionary tale for future multi-million dollar transit hub projects, illustrating what can happen when customer experience is not put at the heart of planning in early stages. It’s a major missed opportunity for an excellent transit connection, which generations of transit riders will be frustrated and delayed by each day — if they even use it at all.
The station was planned and funded explicitly for the purpose of making a transfer between two regional services. Despite that intention, the SMART train station is located over a half-mile from the Larkspur Golden Gate Ferry terminal — an 11-20 minute walk depending on your level of physical fitness and your luck with the crosswalk lights. Pedestrians are faced with a choice between four circuitous potential walking routes connecting the SMART station to the Ferry Terminal (see our interactive map). The most direct route involves cutting through a parking lot without sidewalks and crossing two sides of the busy intersection of Sir Francis Drake Boulevard and Larkspur Landing Circle. A $9.4-million pedestrian and bicycle bridge opened in 2016, presumably in part to help people avoid having to cross busy streets at grade when making this transfer; but using the bridge adds an additional three minutes to the walking time, and requires sharing limited space with cyclists.
As can be seen in the video we recorded of the transfer along the shortest of the three routes, which took 11 minutes, nearly all people making the transfer opted for the parking lot cut-through versus the new pedestrian bridge. In addition to being a long and arduous walk, there’s little protection from the elements or from cars zooming by, dissuading all but the most committed of transit enthusiasts - or anyone who simply has no other option - from making this transfer. Why hassle with an 11-minute walk from the SMART to the ferry when one can just drive and park right in front of the ferry terminal for just $2.00 a day? Or better yet, drive all the way to San Francisco, foregoing the $8.00 per person, per direction ferry ticket price ($12.50 if you don’t have Clipper), and instead paying a mere $7.25 for the bridge toll for a return trip of an entire car full of people?
How did we manage to mess up such a significant transit connection? As the satellite map of the area shows, there are few obstructions other than surface parking separating the current SMART station from the ferry terminal. The decision to locate the rail station so far from the Ferry Terminal dates back to 2003, when, during the environmental review process, the City of Larkspur protested against station options that were located immediately beside the Ferry Terminal. Why? Because they required the removal and reconstruction of two single-story buildings, and due to concerns that the elevated rail line and new station would obstruct views of the bay. Despite recommending station location options closer to the ferry terminal, SMART staff ultimately capitulated to the City of Larkspur’s demands in the interest of having the project move forward. At no point did MTC, the state, or any other entity providing funds to the project insist that funding for a rapid transit project - and a regional hub of such significance - be tied the requirement of high quality, convenient transfers.
In the absence of the Bay Area having an accountable Transportation Network Manager entity that oversees the strategic planning of our regional network, including applying standards for capital project planning and design, the local players involved - in this case, SMART, the City of Larkspur, and other local public agencies - were left to battle out the design amongst themselves. Local objections by a few ultimately prevailed over the regional needs of hundreds of thousands, resulting in compromises that have undermined the original point of the $55-million Larkspur Station extension, and one could argue, the SMART investment as a whole. Using this station now reminds us how important it is to ensure that the regional hubs we are currently designing, like San Jose Diridon, or any new stations associated with a second Transbay Tube or a Downtown Extension of Caltrain, be overseen closely by an entity that is truly accountable for regional transit connectivity that can prioritize the needs of customers during the design phase. If we don’t, we’ll continue to build more Larkspurs and create more barriers to using transit.
To end on a positive note, SMART deserves credit for attempting to coordinate schedules and fares for the new station opening, despite the poor physical connection between the train station and ferry terminal. The new SMART schedule effective as of January 2, 2020 has been adjusted so that (almost) all of the trains are coordinated with ferry departure or arrival within about thirty minutes. While seemingly obvious, coordinating schedules is relatively rare in the Bay Area.
One unexpected happy surprise of our recent journey from Cotati to San Francisco, which included this transfer at Larkspur, was learning that SMART and Golden Gate Ferry have launched an integrated fare pilot program. During this six month pilot program, the “Rail & Sail” ticket allows riders to use SMART and the Ferry on a single ticket for just $12. In the absence of a regionally integrated fare system across Bay Area transit agencies, this discount is significant, and saved us $3.00 per ticket.
Like many pilot programs, however, it has exceptions and caveats that may limit its impact on increasing transit ridership. It’s only good for non-peak hour journeys, so most commuters are still faced with $14-18 combined fares just to get to San Francisco (plus any additional Muni or BART fares when they get there). It’s also not a discount you automatically receive by tapping your Clipper Card off one system and onto the other. You can only get the discount by downloading the SMART mobile app and purchasing the special ticket in advance of boarding your first train or ferry. Considering Golden Gate Ferry and SMART have the highest rates of Clipper Card usage of any of the Bay Area’s transit agencies, with Clipper making up 96% and 84% of ticket sales respectively for each agency, the biggest barrier to taking advantage of the discount is knowing about it in the first place. So far, there’s no promotion of it at any of the SMART stations or on the ticket vending machines (Note: SMART clarified via Twitter that they’re still in the early stages of promoting the discount an have more marketing planned).
While coordinated fares and schedules are certainly a welcome step in the right direction, they can only do so much to overcome poorly designed transit hubs that will exist for decades. Let’s make sure we never repeat the mistakes of Larkspur. Tell Bay Area leaders you support reforms that advance a more seamless transit system, with excellent, direct connections at major transit hubs, by signing our petition in support of our Seamless Transit Principles.
And bring good walking shoes next time you plan to connect between the SMART train and the ferry at Larkspur.
Ian Griffiths
