. >> reporter: debra allen is one of nine people on b.a.r.t.'s board of directors. she represents district one, which includes the four b.a.r.t. stations from lafayette to concord in central contra costa county. before getting elected to the board in 2016, debra worked for decades as an accountant and financial officer. >> i decided, you know, this would be a place where i could bring my financial background to possibly, you know, help the public and do some good. >> reporter: but when debra got into office, she said she quickly realized b.a.r.t.'s finances were in trouble. >> if you look at the numbers for the operating costs and spending since the pandemic, it has consistently, for the most part, risen every year. >> reporter: from 2018 to 2022 b.a.r.t.'s operating expenses increased from $992 million to just over $1 billion while at the same time operating revenues plummeted from $546 million to just $166 million. to cover that gap, b.a.r.t. received emergency funding from the federal government, but that funding runs out in 2025. with ridership still below half

. >> reporter: debra allen is one of nine people on b.a.r.t.'s board of directors. she represents district 1 which includes the four b.a.r.t. stations from lafayette to concord in central contra costa county. before getting elected to the board in 2016, debra worked for decades as an accountant and financial officer. >> i decided you know, this would be a place where i could bring my financial background to possibly, you know, help the public and do some good. >> reporter: but when debra got into office, she says she quickly realized b.a.r.t.'s finances were in trouble. >> if you look at the numbers for the operating costs and spending since the pandemic, it has consistently, for the most part, risen every year. >> reporter: from 2018 to 2022, b.a.r.t.'s operating expenses increased from $992 million to just over $1 billion. while at the same time, operating revenues plummeted from $546 million to just $166 million. to cover that gap, b.a.r.t. received emergency funding from the federal government. but that funding runs out in 2025. with ridership still below half o