The station serves as the eastern terminus of the eastern Contra Costa extension known during construction as eBART and after construction as BART to Antioch. BART to Antioch is a diesel multiple unit line which extends from the Pittsburg/Bay Point station, passing through Pittsburg. Antioch station serves the central area of Antioch in addition to commuters to job centers in San Francisco and other areas. It is also expected to attract passengers from Oakley, Brentwood, and Discovery Bay, communities that were envisioned as part of the original extension but could not be included due to cost. BART plans to extend service southeast to Brentwood and upgrade the extension to full BART service while pushing the DMU portion further out.
Security and staffing concerns
Preliminary designs called for a station without an agent present, nor restrooms or escalators. This prompted concern from the community and the plans were redesigned to add these features, however the station will only have one employee present at any given time, one agent or one maintenance worker at a time. An extra police beat will be added. This caused concern among Antioch residents and the Antioch Police Department may have to cooperatively police the station. The lack of a full-time station agent has resulted in security issues after opening.
Start of service
Initially planned to open in 2016, the station's service date was delayed until May 26, 2018. BART anticipated the station would serve 1,575 round trips per day based upon a supposed opening in 2015. Two weeks following the beginning of service in 2018, ridership was observed to be about 3,000 round trips per day, overloading the station's parking facilities and causing riders to illegally park nearby. The station has 1,012 parking spaces. Soon after opening, the agency began planning an additional 1,600 parking space facility north of the station site. In October 2018, BART announced plans for a $16.4 million, 800-space lot east of the station, which would open in 2020. In November 2019, the BART board approved a $9.9 million contract for an 850-space lot, which is expected to open in early 2021.
