Published Friday, Nov. 16, 2001, in the San Jose Mercury News 
   
S.J. mayor's tenacity kept BART connection alive

   BY GARY RICHARDS
   Mercury News
   
   About a decade ago, then-Santa Clara County Supervisor Ron Gonzales
   dialed Roadshow with an offer. Come on a demonstration train from
   Union City to San Jose, a Caltrain-style service that Gonzales found
   intriguing.
   
   Why bother, I thought. Convinced that trains would never connect BART
   with Silicon Valley, I turned down the offer. There were more pressing
   issues.
   
   Well, give the man his due. More than anyone else, the current San
   Jose mayor is responsible for the historic agreement to bring Bay Area
   Rapid Transit to San Jose.
   
   ``A lot of people thought I was chasing windmills,'' Gonzales said.
   ``But I always had confidence in the voters of Santa Clara County who
   for years said, `Just give us an opportunity to tell you what we
   think.' I think they understand that we're part of a bigger region,
   and the only way you can do that is with BART.''
   
   Ironically, the spark that set off the surge for BART had little to do
   with BART. During a speech three years ago, Gonzales called for
   connecting BART to San Jose. He meant with Caltrain-style trains. ``I
   know what I meant, but I'm glad others heard it differently,'' he
   said.
   
   Alameda County Supervisor Scott Haggerty heard that speech and phoned
   Gonzales the next day, setting in motion events to extend BART. When
   the Silicon Valley Manufacturing Group got behind the idea, more
   muscle was onboard.
   
   Those talks got the attention of Gov. Gray Davis, who in 1999
   announced he would set aside $760 million for trains to San Jose.
   ``That was the turning point,'' said David Vossbrink, a Gonzales aide.
   
   It marked the first time money had been committed to extending BART.
   Voters did the rest, endorsing a 30-year sales tax last fall by a
   nearly 71 percent majority -- nearly 20 percentage points higher than
   the 1996 vote to widen bottlenecks on Highway 101 and Interstate 880.
   
   The region needs $834 million in federal aid to complete construction
   of the $3.7 billion project. And the Valley Transportation Authority
   needs $48 million a year to pay for operating and upkeep when trains
   start running.
   
   But we're not chasing windmills anymore.
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   Contact Gary Richards at mrroadshow@sjmercury.com or (408) 920-5335.