Dear Editor, South County voters should not be deluded: San Jose
Mayor Ron Gonzales could care less about BART ever reaching Morgan
Hill and Gilroy.
Dear Editor,
South County voters should not be deluded: San Jose Mayor Ron Gonzales could care less about BART ever reaching Morgan Hill and Gilroy.
His comments, proposals and attitude during the last six months show he wants to put the BART feather in his mayoral cap – at any cost.
He asks for “shared sacrifice’” meaning every community should sacrifice a few road or rail projects in order to fund BART. I disagree. The other projects funded by Measure A are just as important now as they were when the voters approved them in 2000. At that time, the county was woefully behind in routine maintenance, safe highway crossings and wider freeways – and so the voters put their money toward projects that would make a difference in their daily lives. BART will not make a difference in South County.
Gonzales also suggests another quarter-cent sales tax specifically for BART. First, even if such a measure passed, there’s no proof that it would come close to funding BART’s gluttonous price price tag of $5 billion. Already, the existing Measure A is bringing in one-third fewer dollars than expected.
And even if BART could be built, how would Santa Clara County residents fund its operation in the future? This has never been adequately answered. In fact, the business plan is based on a ridiculous ridership of 89,000 people per day. Look into a VTA bus or light rail car any day and tell me – who are we kidding?
I applaud Los Altos Mayor David Casas and Santa Clara County Supervisor Liz Kniss for refusing to even consider Gonzales’ proposal. Obviously, they don’t want to waste any more taxpayer-funded time discussing a losing proposition that even the federal government has abandoned.
BART costs too much to serve too few people. Gonzales’ proposals make me wonder who would be served most.
Jenny Midtgaard Derry, Gilroy
