City of Fremont v. San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District

The City of Fremont filed a petition for a writ of mandate and administrative mandamus challenging a decision by the San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District (BART) to certify a final environmental impact report (EIR) which was prepared in connection with BART’s plan to extend one of its transit lines. Fremont opposed the project because part of the extension would run on elevated tracks through Central Park, the primary park for the citizens of Fremont. In its petition, Fremont alleged the EIR violated the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) (Pub. Resources Code, § 21000 et seq.) because BART had not evaluated adequately the effects of the extension on Central Park. The trial court denied the petition, ruling the EIR was adequate under CEQA. Fremont now appeals. We will affirm.

I. Factual and Procedural Background

The characteristics of BART are well known to residents of the Bay Area. It currently operates a 72-mile, 34-station, regional transit system that carries approximately 250,000 patrons daily. One of BART’s transit lines currently ends in Fremont, near Central Park. The present dispute arises from BART’s decision to extend the Fremont line south…