San Jose, Oakland Get Overdue Spots On Bay Area Transit Panel
SAN JOSE (KCBS) - Two of the three biggest cities in the Bay Area have surprisingly never had a voice on the regional panel that sets priorities for road projects and determines tolls on bridges.
However, that is about to change. The Metropolitan Transportation Ccommission voted Wednesday to add San Jose, the Bay Area's largest city; and Oakland, home of the so-called Nasty Nimitz freeway, to the existing 16-member panel.
KCBS' Mike Colgan Reports:
"This really just means that the three largest cities can cooperate, have a voice, have representation and can really act as one region when it comes to more housing, better transportation, so we can do better with our greenhouse gas goals," said Commissioner Ken Yeager, also a Santa Clara County supervisor.
San Jose and Oakland were much smaller when the MTC was formed in the 1970s.
The additional seats must still be approved by the legislature.
(© 2011 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
