SF area bus systems to institute "Early Bus Express" service as BART to start service one hour later (because of long term seismic retrofitting project)

For years I've suggested that the DC area needs an integrated night owl bus network, although for DC proper there is such a network although it connects poorly to Union Station and there needs to be service to National Airport as needed when the Metrorail system is closed:

-- "Night moves: the need for more night time (and weekend) transit service, especially when the subway is closed," 2013
-- "Night and weekend transit/subway service: Metrorail edition," 2016
-- "Slight revisiting of the issue of overnight transit service: San Francisco," 2016
-- "London 24 hour weekend Underground service launches tonight," 2016

BART is the regional rapid transit system in the SF Bay and the east and west sections of the region's transit system--split by the San Francisco Bay-are connected by the Transbay Tube under the Bay.

To accommodate construction in the upcoming 3.5 year project of seismic updates to the Transbay Tube, the system will be opening one hour later, shifting from 4am to 5am.

According to the webpage announcing the "Early Bus Express" service, about 2,900 people use BART during that hour.  To maintain service to this customer segment, the area's transit agencies are launching a special bus service is launching.

The alternative service plan creates 14 new express bus lines that will run from 3:45 am until 6:00 am. This includes 7 Transbay bus routes, 5 East Bay routes and 2 San Francisco/Peninsula routes.

The Early Bus Express fares will be set to be no more than the current BART fare.

-- PDF

This kind of anticipatory creation of new service in response to service cessation to maintain serving segments of the ridership is often overlooked by transit systems in other areas.

The Early Bird Express will launch on February 19th, the day that BART service hours change.