We asked the two candidates for BART Director District 5: What do you view as the biggest challenge (or challenges) facing BART now, and how will you work to address it (them) in the next four years? How does BART impact Castro Valley, and how will you promote collaboration to support a working partnership between BART and Castro Valley?

BART faces many challenges, I believe beginning with the culture of the organization and the Board. It is my intent to work hard at relationship-building to allow for greater consensus, so
the Board can take a real leadership role in moving the agenda. I was very effective in my service as Mayor of Pleasanton, and I believe I can bring the same leadership to the BART Board. Currently, too many projects just get bogged down in continued environmental review, and lack of decision-making to get projects to completion.

Very high on my list is to bring the entire $30 billion asset into the 21st century, so the system can truly be reliable, and safe, with increased connectivity. BART should connect with Ace, which will greatly help people in transit to and from the Castro Valley Station. I do not support the bond measure, RR. It won’t be sufficient to get the system improvements necessary over the next several years. And, there is no certainty as to what we as taxpayers will pay, nor for how long. We need more accountability and transparency than this measure offers.

But I must also say that while I support workers’ rights, I will not support striking workers shutting down the entire system. It isn’t fair to prohibit people from Castro Valley who have no other mode of transportation from getting to work and on time, because of a few who are unhappy with their contract.

And, I intend to take a close look at pay and pensions. The Board must have the backbone to address these issues, and insure that the agency’s budget is whole.

Finally, if sitting in traffic is a choice over riding BART, there is something very, very wrong.

Candidate website: www.JenniferForBart.com

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