Caltrain budget deficit could surpass half a billion dollars over next decade, says financial report

Caltrain’s cumulative operating deficit may exceed half a billion dollars over the next decade without significant changes in ridership, funding and other factors, according to a new report on the transit system’s financial outlook.

Caltrain has recovered just 26 percent of its pre-pandemic ridership as of November 2022, the lowest rate among the Bay Area’s major public transportation systems, according to a report by the consulting firm Bell Burnett & Associates presented Thursday to Caltrain’s governing board.