The 72 is a bus route in the

East Bay The East Bay is the eastern region of the San Francisco Bay Area and includes cities along the eastern shores of San Francisco Bay and San Pablo Bay. The region has grown to include inland communities in Alameda and Contra Costa counties. Wi ...

operated by

AC Transit AC Transit is the main Public transport bus service, bus transit operator in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, California. AC Transit is the third largest bus operator in California, serving the western portions of Alameda and C ...

. It serves the San Pablo Avenue corridor between

Jack London Square Jack London Square is a neighborhood on the waterfront of Oakland, California, United States. Named after the author Jack London and owned by the Port of Oakland, it is the home of stores, restaurants, hotels, Amtrak's Jack London Square st ...

Oakland Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major West Coast port, Oakland is ...

and

Hilltop Mall Hilltop Mall is a defunct regional shopping center in the Hilltop neighborhood of Richmond, California. Hilltop was managed and co-owned by Prologis, Inc. The only anchor store left is Walmart. There are 3 vacant anchor stores that were once ...

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, a city in the United States * Richmond, London, a town in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town ...

. The service is descendant from the original

streetcar A tram (also known as a streetcar or trolley in Canada and the United States) is an urban rail transit in which vehicles, whether individual railcars or multiple-unit trains, run on tramway tracks on urban public streets; some include s ...

lines that ran along the street. Transit services along San Pablo Avenue were previously provided by two

systems. The Oakland Traction Company San Pablo Line served the street in

Alameda County Alameda County ( ) is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 1,682,353, making it the 7th-most populous county in the state and 21st most populous nationally. The county seat is Oakland. A ...

and the

East Shore and Suburban Railway The East Shore and Suburban Railway (E&SR) was a formerly independent unit of the historic San Francisco Bay Area Key System which ran streetcar trains in Richmond, California, San Pablo, and El Cerrito. There were several lines with terminals ...

served the street in

Contra Costa County Contra Costa County (; ''Contra Costa'', Spanish language, Spanish for 'Opposite Coast') is a U.S. county, county located in the U.S. state of California, in the East Bay of the San Francisco Bay Area. As of the 2020 United States census, the ...

with a transfer between the two at the county line. A one-seat ride was established with the introduction of buses along San Pablo Avenue on November 7, 1933. The 72 Line initially terminated at Sixth Street in Richmond and at Tenth Street in Oakland. By 1973 and the start of

Bay Area Rapid Transit Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) is a rapid transit system serving the San Francisco Bay Area in California. BART serves 50 stations along six routes and of track, including eBART, a spur line running to Antioch, and Oakland Airport Connecto ...

services, the 72 ran as several branching lines off San Pablo with letter designations: 72B, 72C, 72M, and 72P. On June 30, 2003, AC Transit inaugurated its first service with bus rapid transit features along the 72's route. Stops on the 72R are spaced roughly every , with priority given at signals along the route.

References

External links

{{Attached KML , display=title,inline
72 Line
— via AC Transit 1933 establishments in California Public transportation in Alameda County, California Transportation in Oakland, California Transportation in Berkeley, California 72