in lost productivity and commerce. we begin with where the strike stands. no movement on the tracks or in the negotiating room either. >> reporter: no. no one is talking right now. i've put in a phone call to bart management. they say they have no movement. i've also put in a call to union workers. they say they haven't heard from anyone. both sides say they're waiting for the other one to come in and say hey, let's negotiate. and no one is doing it right now. it's an eerie feeling right now. you see that the doors are closed here at bart. there was a huge rally outside the city hall this afternoon. a rally was held with city workers. they are both on strike as everyone knows. the bart walkout is p over wages and benefits. they're asking for a 4.5% raise.

bart employees don't have to pay for pensions. management would like to change that. >> ar they give was a break down of the 8.5%, which turns out to be $1 per year for a raise. $1 per year for each member. that is not sufficient. >> there's more to it than that for most employees. >> reporter: so the trains you see here are somewhere parked in a yard, waiting for commuters to get on. and commuters are struggling right now to get home. now the last time there was a bart strike was back in 1997. those who lived it may remember that jerry brown and willie brown were both mayors at the time. we spoke with will' brown today

and he gives us his thoughts on what he did to try to settle that strike 16 years ago. we're going to talk to him coming up at 6:30. reporting live, i'm cheryl heard, nbc bay area news. let's turn things over to anthony slaughter with a look at the current conditions. >> the good news is that we're not looking at terrible back ups. this is 101 looking northbound. you'll notice good conditions. not a whole lot happening. i want to show you the traffic map in this specific location. you get past 101 up towards mountain view, that's where we see areas slowing, the ultimate routes, 280 is the recommended routes there. there are pockets of slowing. you can see the good news now, not looking at any slow downs with the camera facing north. that's really good, considering we are in the heart of rush

hour. in the east bay, things are a little different. we have a lot of congestion. she separate accidents. that's keeping things slow and pockets as well. this is causing backups from 680, hop over to 84 and you can skip past all of that. it may take an extra 30 minutes, but as you get to 680 and580, numerous accidents. one of our crews was getting over to san francisco. the good news is if you're coming from san francisco, once you get past treasure island things start to improve. but the unfortunate thing is if you are moving southbound through oakland on 880, you'll notice lots of traffic because of three separate accidents, one in fremont, one in heyward. we took you along as we

clocked the commute from san francisco to walnut creek. the photographer headed across the bridge. we wanted to see how long it takes. i've done this commute. on average, we're talking 45 minutes, an hour depending on whether there's an accident or mott. what happened today? 45 minutes. that is pretty good time. >> so surprisingly, for now that drove has been smooth once you're on the bay bridge, but getting out of san francisco and onto the bridge, that's a different story. terry mcsweeney joins us. i know during the 5:00 hour it was rough, how is it looking now sno. >> reporter: it has really gotten better. in the past 25, 30 minutes things are gotten better. cars in this right lane here that are trying to get onto the bay bridge, that's kind of slow. before, you may remember, it was a mess. take a look at what it hooked like just a short time ago. it was really a dramatic and

recent turn around. my main concern was not so much getting hit by a car sense they weren't moving, but people on bicycle, cruising along, zipping past cars, a great day if you can, to get on your buy single. talked to some people about their experience and it wasn't positive. take a listen. >> it's really a mess. i was late like three hours this morning at work. >> reporter: where were you coming from? >> san lee androe. >> quite a bit of traffic as you can see. they're striking for something fair. you've got to do what you've got to do. >> reporter: that man there giving us an idea that this is not changing his might of how he comes down. i've talked to a lot of people while they've had a chance to focus on it as they sit in their cars. does it change anything about how they feel about this strike. a slight majority were on the side of management saying the

people are lucky to have a job in this economy, but a lot of people are saying, as that man did, you've got to do what you got to do and he should give the people that bart is making to the people who are making that money, in ordother words, the w. things dramatically improved. the right lane backed up for another four blocks or five, as opposed to earlier when it was blocked up as far as the eye could see. terry mcsweeney. the morning commute was so sluggish. but now in the evening commute, it actually looks fatherly wide open. some striking bart workers join oakland workers earlier today. several members of san francisco's board of supervisors turned out to show their support. for some bart workers this isn't the first time on the picket line. >> i knew what this was going to be like because i was here in

'97. i knew it was bad. and i ride these trains a lot too. and i see the public. we hate doing it. we really do. >> and '97 strike lasted six days i believe. as for the oakland city worker, they're hosting a rally at the city hall beginning at 7:30. there were bay area companies working all day to try to ease the pain. we bring in scott budman with more on that. >> the bay area is famous for starting companies that solve problems like the ravic we see. that's a look at 880 in oakland. with companies created with telecommuting and ride sharing, at least some commuters were able to steer clear of today's backup. we found steven lee working from home, having decided to skip his

usual commute. >> i've been taking bart to work for the last ten years. >> reporter: because of the strike. but steven hasn't missed a beat or a meetings thanks to a product called go to meeting. >> it's really great because i didn't have to spend two hours driving in traffic this morning. so it's pretty, like relaxing and, you know, actually concentrate better. >> they can go right into the meeting. >> reporter: go to meeting comes from citrix, one of many companies trying to ease the pain of the bart strike by keeping people like steven out of his car and on the screen. >> if you can take that drive time out of your day, you are a happier person. you're more relaxed. you're going to have better meetings because you're not stressed out when you get there. you can start every meeting on time. it really does give you a lot more control over your day. >> reporter: but it's not just software easing the bart burden.

by putting rubber to the road, smartphone app driven car sharing company look uber or cyber car got a huge boost today. it's how technology eases the pain. strike. now according to a group, nearly 5 million people will telecommute every day by 2016. and some of them, you never know, might have interest dogs by their side. >> thank you, scott. go to our website. we have continuing coverage of the bart strike. coming up at 6:30, do bart workers have a point when they say they're being squeezed out of a pay increase. we're searching for answers in tonight's reality check. we're also following breaking news in the east bay. firefighteris are battling a

fire. the flames were threatening several homes, you see from the nbcok chopper. thankfully wind conditions are mild. >> reporter: i got an update just a few minutes ago. at 320 acres, 60% contained. this fire started at 1:30. so there's been some movement here. cal fire's been doing water drops directly over our hid. and one of the more recent airdrops was where you sigh that smoke down the road. so they are keeping a very close eye on some of the hotspots hereby. there are still flames on the other side of this hill where actually a house was threatened. it came within inches of the flames. the other side is actually where the terrain is steeper. similar

>> because here we're in the middle of this tinderbox, right? we didn't get rain this year. we know it's risky. we try to do a good job of keeping the weeds down up towards our house. i was shocked. i didn't know it was so close. so yeah. it was scary. >> as for what started this it's unclear. but there were downed power lines. not sure if they sparked the fire or if they were downed in the fire. investigators will be out here to figure this out. one home saved. no injuries, the good news. full containment expected within the next hour or hour and a half. hand crews were working to cut a

five foot clearance line, so the fire doesn't come back here. also they are performing a controlled burn on the other side. so do not be alarmed if you see smoke and flames. meanwhile they've closed the road between the train pavilion and buchanan. and they are fighting several fires in contra costa county. firefighters asking for your help in preventing ignition of another fire. and good evening. i'm in the weather center. we are tracking that weather. it was h-o-t today. you can see the haze with us. uz air quality and how much the triple digits will last. we'll show you an amazes piece of bionic technology and how it's helping people get back

on this feet. and i'm chris sanchez in san jose where express weddings were the word of the day, santa clara's answer to same sex marriage. how it went here.

history in the making around the making today around the bay. in nearly every county. same sex couples were allowed to file for a marriage license and marry. and they did. we take a look at san jose at how the day went in one of the biggest counties. >> reporter: in san francisco there was a crush of people. in santa clara county, a lot of folks were called in extra to work extra hours in case there was a crush of couples looking to marry. there was a steady stream of

very happy people. when they said yes at santa clar ra's window, it's because they couldn't wait one moment longer. >> it was quick and fast. >> reporter: the supreme court's prop 8 decision allowed them to marry in california. and the court's doma provisional lous them to seek federal protection and benefits a well. >> it was important for us to get married as soon as possible in case anything changes. and we can finally file a petition for my husband's green card, just like you could. >> reporter: weddings started friday in san francisco as soon as the appeals court lifted the stay and continued all weekend. but today was the first day for same sex couple does marry in the eight other bay area counties. all the counties added staff so

anyone mo wanted to marry could. including one couple together for 26 years, a u.s. veteran who survived cancer at his side and a police captain and her wife. >> it's huge to be not marginalized anymore. even though we've given our vows between friends and families ago p almost two years ago, to do it this morning with the super adviser in the county building is a big, big deal. >> reporter: they had ceremonies before their friends and family. and they already took vows that they were already living by, but they say having that legal document, the one piece of paper is the icing on the cake. the pilot of an oil tanker that clipped the bay bridge back in january will be suspended without pay for five months. the board of commissioners handed down that decision today.

captain john cleese struck a tower of the bridge. no oil spill from the boat and no one was hurt, but it did cause about $1.5 million in damages. he will also undergo mandatory retraining but will be allowed to keep his pilot's license. now to the heat. cal iso has issued a power flex alert. that means you're to conserve energy in the late afternoon when fans, air conditioner and other appliances put the highest strain on the grid. they urm you to avoid using dishwashers until later. >> so power one of the issues. but fire danger the other. let's bring in our meteorologist. we saw stephanie up in concord. she said the wind's not too bad. but in the tri valley, it was

still blustery out there. >> all you need is winds 10, 20 miles an hour and that is enough to fan the fires. it is not the worst of conditions across the bay. mainly right now the wind is more onshore. 25 miles an hour. that's helping to keep the humidity out. it's anywhere from 5 to 15 miles per hour. i want to give this to you. in the east bay where it will be hottest, you'll be very concerned about this. tomorrow morning, the good news, not starting off with barely any wind at all. it's going to be very calm for us as we head out 6:00, 7:00 in the morning. the worst of it during the peak of the heat tomorrow, winds will be anywhere from 5 to 15 miles per hour. you can see this blue color here. that corresponds to 5 to 15 miles per hour. let's get to the heat today. it was scorching out here.

good enough for a few records, but brief it or not, this 103 we had in liver more not good enough for a record. it can get very hot of course in the bay area in time of year. the old record 110 set in 1950. today, again, even 103 wasn't good enough for us. 97 in santa rosa, then you'll notice something interesting here. it did stay cooler at the coastline. but one of our typical hotspots only hit 95. that helps keep you out. triple digit rape, but san jose d did pop-up common sense stuff, remember to drink plenty of water, don't forget those pets. let's get you outside to that live hd sky camera.

you can really see the impact across the peninsula. this hot area of high pressure is having. it's trapping all the particles right on down to the surface there in palo alto. we have the fog in place throughout san francisco. so let's go ahead and get a look at our first look forecast for tomorrow and what we can expect for tuesday is a mild start here for the bay. also for the interior valley. temperatures are going to be in the 60s, but by 11:00 we're going to be climbing. it's going to be another hot day in the forecast. let's get a look at what that's going to mean in terms of temperature. we're going to see monsoonal moisture ranging from 100 to 105 to across the bay area. may have some stray lightning strikes that could spark off some fires. now let's get to the three day forecast. you can see tomorrow, 107 for

the interior valleys, 10on wednesday, 103 on thursday. and we'll stay with the 70s at the coastline. we'll have more coming up in the forecast if it's going to extend past thursday with the triple digit digits. we want to check in with the continuing coverage of the bart strike. we wanted to find out the traffic from san francisco crossing the bay bridge. we're on highway 24 going east towards walnut creek. and it's smooth sailing. it's al qaeda 6:306789 usually it would be pretty congested. but surprisingly the commute has been relatively easy considering bart is on strike coming up, the notable first for kpa ca. and a major shakeup in a

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there's a shake up at zinga. t they are known for games like farmville. we'll find out now what happens with zinga. their shares rose about 10% on today's news. a new budget is in place and so is a new formula to finance the state's schools. governor brown signed the legislation to overhaul for k through 12 spending. he's the one who lob evened for the change saying he wanted to untie the strings and give local

school districts more flexibility. the bill sends a higher proportion of money to schools in low income areas. but all the state's schools will be getting more money per pupil. today marks a shift in california. whites and latinos from now an equal share of the population. each comprising about 39%. the shift has been years in the making. and latinos are poised to become the largest ethnic group by the end of the year. california will become the second state with the majority latino population behind new mexico we're continuing to watch the wildfire burning near concord. and so much more on the bart situation. the bart strike has the potential to naurl public transportation. bart would be short changing the

union members. stay tuned. negotiations are on ice. will it thaw anytime soon? we'll talk to former mayor willie brown about that. coming up. is for everyone.h it's for value seekers. for spicy italian lovers. for veggie eaters. for meatball dreamers. for everyone who wants more of what they love. the new $4 lunch. a 6 inch sub and 21 ounce drink. tons to choose from. all day every day.

it's for value seekers. for spicy italian lovers. for veggie eaters. for meatball dreamers. for everyone who wants more of what they love. the new $4 lunch. a 6 inch sub and 21 ounce drink. tons to choose from. all day every day. welcome back. as we ten to follow our breaking news, day one of this bart strike. it was expected to really cripple the commute. this morning was difficult, but this evening it's been relatively light. there's been some trouble, but

nothing like the bart strike in 1997. but that was in september, with a lot more traffic usually in that month. traffic is still heavy but it is moving. let's take a look at how things are moving along on the bay bridge as well. tee spite that getting out of san francisco and on the bridge was challenging even this evening. so the question is how long will this all last and what is the purpose of it? we check back in with cheryl heard. there seems to be no negotiating at all. >> reporter: that's right. both sides are nowhere near the bar gaining table. we have no idea where negotiations will take place. we are live at the bart station. the door is closed and peck et signs are up. and we've talked to one and who's seen it all before. there are two sides to every story. >> yesterday we met at 3:30 at the request of staff and the