Key Station, West Oakland, CA

This station is visible from both I880 and the frontage road in West Oakland. For those of you who are curious as to what it may be, it is one of the last remaining stations from the Key System. I was very curious, and so on a recent visit to Oakland, took a detour to get some photos. Unfortunately the site is surrounded by chain link fence, and so I couldn't get close up for the photos I wanted.

The Key System was a light rail, or tram system that linked Oakland, Berkeley and other East Bay cities to the Transbay Terminal in San Francisco.

The trams used to run across the Bay Bridge, on the lower deck. It was decided that trams were not needed, and got in the way of the cars. The system was retired, and the decks of the Bay Bridge were each made one way.

Many years later, it was decided that there were too many cars. Addition of a mass transit system was called for, and that is where BART comes into the picture.

BART runs about a mile away from this old station, pretty much following Adeline to the Bay Bridge causeway, then plunging under The Bay to San Francisco.

Despite being over grown with weeds, and lacking in irrigation, there was still evidence of the geraniums in the planters at the stations main entrance. I found an old bus stop, for the 62 route, which suggests that the yard of the station served as a bus terminus for some years after the trains were retired.

There is a new housing development one block from the station, across a large vacant lot, and it has embraced the railway theme, these pieces of decorative steelwork reminiscent of the station platform awning.

I was ultimately left with the question, which is the more opulent society, the one that could build such a grand looking station, the one which could abandon it, or the one which can afford the seismic retrofit and refurbishment?

I have shared some more photos on line at Picasa

16th and wood Oakland

Update 2 June 2008:-

I know it's a bit late but...
- West Oakland housing project must get underway
Oakland Tribune, May 7, 2005