Where the money goes.
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.
The highest-paid transit employees in 2024
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 |
What the top jobs pay
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 |
Overtime turns the rank and file into the top earners
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. In all, 51 BART employees collected more than $400,000 in total pay and benefits that year, 43 of them in the police department, and fourteen cleared $500,000. Several BART rail operations controllers and senior operations foreworkers cleared $340,000 to $386,000, with overtime that routinely exceeded their regular pay.
The executive tier is well paid too
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.
A note on AC Transit
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.