Before asking for another 14 years of sales tax, the agencies should explain their pay. These are among the highest-compensated transit employees in the five-county area, drawn from public compensation records. Figures are total pay and benefits unless noted, and the reporting year varies by agency.
These are the top earners across the region's transit special districts, ranked by total pay and benefits. The most striking fact: the single highest-paid person at BART was not the General Manager. It was a police officer whose overtime pushed total compensation past $660,000.
| Position | Agency | Regular pay | Overtime | Total pay & benefits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Senior Police Officer (84-hour) | BART | $158,361 | $272,534 | $661,388 |
| Senior Police Officer (84-hour) | BART | $158,361 | $212,845 | $573,399 |
| General Manager | BART | $430,502 | — | $554,782 |
| Senior Police Officer (84-hour) | BART | $152,893 | $228,558 | $545,043 |
| Police Sergeant (84-hour) | BART | $188,383 | $162,690 | $539,965 |
| Police Sergeant (84-hour) | BART | $194,111 | $142,838 | $539,113 |
| Police Lieutenant (84-hour) · +$209,437 leave payout | BART | $131,957 | $9,747 | $532,438 |
| Police Lieutenant (84-hour) | BART | $195,004 | $142,250 | $531,963 |
| Police Sergeant | BART | $183,709 | $159,655 | $530,309 |
| General Counsel | VTA | $319,319 | — | $530,139 |
| Police Lieutenant · +$96,252 leave payout | BART | $213,397 | $22,782 | $529,418 |
| General Manager | VTA | $371,420 | — | $512,188 |
Even setting overtime aside, the leadership of these agencies is richly compensated. These are total pay and benefits for the top positions in 2024.
| Position | Agency | Total pay & benefits |
|---|---|---|
| General Manager | BART | $554,782 |
| General Counsel | Santa Clara VTA | $530,139 |
| General Manager | Santa Clara VTA | $512,188 |
| Police Chief | BART | $491,475 |
| General Manager / CEO | SamTrans | $480,150 |
| Executive Director | Caltrain | $475,501 |
| Executive Director | SF County Transportation Authority | $471,967 |
| Chief Capital Megaprojects Delivery Officer | Santa Clara VTA | $423,742 |
| General Counsel | BART | $413,652 |
| Deputy General Manager | BART | $404,931 |
In 2024 the highest-compensated employee at BART was not an executive. A senior police officer earned $272,534 in overtime on top of a $158,361 base, for $661,388 in total pay and benefits, more than $100,000 above the General Manager. At least eight BART police officers, sergeants, and lieutenants out-earned the head of the agency. Several BART rail operations controllers and senior operations fore workers cleared $340,000 to $386,000, with overtime that routinely exceeded their regular pay.
The pattern is not confined to BART. At Santa Clara VTA, a substation maintainer reached roughly $500,000 in total pay and benefits, and an overhead line worker about $436,000, largely through overtime and other pay layered on a base salary near $133,000. These figures reflect work rules and staffing practices the agencies have left in place, and that a new 14-year tax would lock in rather than reform.
The top jobs are not modestly compensated. The BART General Manager received $554,782 in total pay and benefits in 2024. Santa Clara VTA's General Counsel made $530,139 and its General Manager $512,188. The executive directors of Caltrain and the San Francisco County Transportation Authority each cleared more than $470,000. Several of these packages are boosted by large deferred-compensation and leave payouts on top of base salary.
AC Transit does not appear in the 2024 State Controller special-districts compensation data, consistent with its history of late or non-compliant filings with the Controller's office. In its last reported year, 2022, AC Transit's general manager received $556,045 in total pay and benefits, and the agency later kept him on full pay through September 2025 in an advisory role with no defined duties, an arrangement a board member publicly called a gift of public funds.
Source: California State Controller, Government Compensation in California (special districts), reporting year 2024, self-reported by each agency and published August 2025. Total pay and benefits equals reported total wages plus employer-paid retirement and health contributions. Lump-sum amounts reflect cashed-out leave. AC Transit figure (2022) from the State Controller as reported by Oaklandside and NBC Bay Area.