tom vacar, ktvu channel 2 news. >> and check this out. riding throng bridge. going through the tunnel there heading into san francisco, getting pictures of the final moments of the eastern span of the bay bridge before the bridge closes. ktvu's patti lee is live at the toll plaza. the westbound lanes are practically empty right now. we will check in with her in a couple minutes. >> if you would hike a sneak peek on the eastern span of the bay bridge, caltranss put out this animation. find more by going to www.ktvu.com. >> the original bay bridge was completed in three years and opened in 1936. coming up, tom vacar will look at how we got here after the 1989 earthquake caused part of the bridge to collapse and the progress of road closures as crews prepare to shut down the bridge and details about the alternatives you could use while the bridge is closed. >> a lack at the -- a look at the count down clock. 2 hours, 56 minutes before the bay bridge closes down and the new one reopens. >>> to our other big stories. the words of martin luther king, jr. willed the

tom vacar explains the story. >> reporter: long time laborer lawyer mike is a former member of the bart director that's connected to the current board. a wide ranging mix of administration and experience of in qualify ree will have limited authorities. >> basically the labor offer and within seven days are going to summarize the offer for them for the governor. >> reporter: the governor alone will decide of the 60 days cool off period. >> they'll not make recommendation or a decision in term of which position is quote the right one or they'll not tell the governor what to do. >> all the governor can do is impose the cooling off period. he cannot force the parties into an agreement. and so without a contract in october we'll all be heading to all we were. experts say the real solution is coming from influential people organizations and corporations who will punish both sides if they feel they'll reach an agre. . tom vacar ktvu channel 2 news >>> cool average than weekend, our meteorologist is here. >> you are right, this cool down harassment great weather for inland communities. and the

you can see tom vacar got a tour of the eastern span and what is still done before it opens after labor day. >> less and less construction equipment up there. today the biggest media turning out in years. there is so much bridge, there is lot more to do and other things such as putting up reflector signs. example, this, one of several electronic signs that'll alert drivers the hazard. while others do touch up works on the deck. pedestrians on the bridge as far as the signature tower but not -- connecters for traffic going in and out of the island nearly requires the shifting of the lanes. all of this moves faster now as the single most important step is done. and connecters with shims to make them stronger until the permanent si fixed and is done in september. >> which means that the bridge has achieved o f the safety to open the bridge after labor weekend. >> it is fair to say that this is now the strongest, most earthquake resistance bridge on earth. >> those are only temporary until the permanent bridge takes place. >> open and much quieter bridge, which should be up and running in n

there will not be criminal charges. >> tom vacar reporting the. now oo -- reporting there. now eric rasmussen. >> reporter: many victims were nurses. a neighbor said many of the survivors and the victim's families are not talking because they could still go after them in civil court. >> the driver says it was engulfed in flames in 60 seconds on the san mateo bridge. >> i feel sorry this happened. sad situation. >> reporter: there were 9 women inside. only four got out alive. jennifer balon, anna alcantara, michelle estrera, and felomina geronga were all killed. the driver has always said he did nothing wrong. >> it has been stressful, though. stressful with the allegations. >> reporter: he facecameras again. >> reporter: were you playing music? >> no. >> reporter: investigators refuted the claims of his wife saying he was on the phone at the time of the accident but he wasn't. >> reporter: you called 911? >> no. so much that happened, man. i am sure -- i know what i did. >> reporter: [ inaudible question ] >> same thing i told you before. i don't wantp to keep reoccurring t

tom vacar, ktvu channel 2 news. >>> officials say a glitch th sent out an evacuation order last month has been fixed. the order was only meant for parts of alamo following a gas leak. contra costa county emergency services officials say it went out county wide because of a link to a fema alert system. >>> the parks department is getting help with a over haul. the director is using the $1 million just found on short term fixes, including maintenance for the parks and a new group is looking into long term fixes. they will spend 18 mungs coming up with solutions, in-- months coming up withclusions. -- with fixes. >> 70 million people visit california parks each year. >>> plans to cut 4,000 jobs world wide, 5% of the work force. cisco sited the recovery for the lay offs. tadeers hamthered stock after hours. -- hammered the stock after hours. the stock fell 10% in extended trading. >>> nice day today. there is the fog out there. it thickened up a bit that is why temperatures today were cooler and tomorrow will be cooler still. you can see that. last might there was no fog at this moment. t

tom vacar is monitoring the negotiations and he's live now. tom, break it down for us. >> reporter: that announcement said if granted, they will have a 60-day cooling off period. that will help commuters until this time in october but not beyond that. the long, drawn out negotiations are nothing less than a high stakes standoff of how high can you fly versus how low can you go. >> there is no movement. i am disappointed in the fact, given there was a board meeting yesterday in closed session where we expected that there was going to be some direction to get this thing moving. >> the board has given the general manager the authority and flexibility to get a fair deal, in their opinion, and we new need to compromise and get to a reasonable place than 21 1/2% rate. >> reporter: the deadline is sunday, and they are not making any significant movements for getting the situation resolved. >> to continue to call possible strikes or put people on notice is just an attempt to put pressure on b.a.r.t. to cave. >> reporter: the court must impose a cooling

reporting live, tom vacar, ktvu news. >>> and we go to how transit workers are stockpiling food, rob.: an ac transit bus is now arriving here at broadway. but few how much longer? more than 180,000 passengers ride ac transit each day. we have the stories of tw

. >>> ktvu's tom vacar with more about the bay bridge. tom. >> reporter: craig, have a look. soon to go from high art of to a real highway. we asked bay area council. that is a consortium of the region's best employers, what those companies are telling their employees about how to avoid the closure. council says employers simply declined to answer. here is what some other larger employers had to say as well as as well as their crease. >> bank trading employee says employers are reasonable flexible about work hours. >> they would allow that, yes. they would. in order for us to be there, to be able and be there at work. >> no such luck for hotel food server. >> business still runs no matter what. the if the bus or bart is late, you still have to work. so i'm going to have to just come to work really, really, really early. >> telecom service technician will have to brave the roadways. >> i am guessing we will have to double the amount of time you would normally use and maybe add an extra half hour. really plan for long trips sitting in traffic. >> some 2,000 workers of pge's 370

ktvu's consumer editor tom vacar has been at that hearing all day long. he's live now with what happens next. tom? >> reporter: those numbers are worth hearing again, because it's all being done in hopes of averting this. another strike. three-member board of inquiry heard from several bart executives and three unions, who vowed to go on strike if they can't get a deal by next sunday's deadline or after a possible 60-day cooling off period. the parties are somewhere between $56 million and $100 million apart on wage, pension and health care issues. but there are other issues. bart says it can be sustainable only if it can get increasing worker costs and worker rules under control. the union says bart has failed to negotiate in good faith and it does want to make a deal. though bart very much wants the cooling off period, the workers fear they will use the time to train others to run the system, which they say is extremely unsafe. then came the public comment period. >> the average bart worker makes over $76,000. they want $60 million more. ask yourself, wh

ktvu consumer editor tom vacar is live where negotiations have been slowly moving along all day. tom. >> reporter: in fact, here at negotiation headquarters, it's fair to say that the parties are literally miles a part. so much so that if the governor's attorneys convince the judge that the parties are so far a part, a strike is likely and the economy of the bay area would be seriously impaired and that the public safety would be threatened. the unions don't like what b.a.r.t. management asked the governor to impose. >> there is little to no movement. with the governor's announcement that he will seek possibly a 60-day injunction on sunday, we're displayed and hope that that announcement will not throw additional cold water on what has been a very, very slow moving day. >> it doesn't change anything about what is taking place in this building this week. everyone is working tirelessly to get to a deal by sunday night, regardless of what the governor announced. >> reporter: if theocology off period expires, a strike is back on the table and the governor has no way to stop it. a stri

. >> our consumer editor tom vacar has been at that hearing all day long. tom is in oakland with more on the new information revealed today. tom? >> reporter: well, it started about 10:30 this morning and a whole lot, a whole lot is at stake, so much so that it's all's hopes that they can see how apart the two sides really are. the three-person committee is hearing from both sides, but the governor alone will decide if a 60-day cooling off period is awarded to avoid this. >> contract limitations have tied our hands to the point where we can't manage our own workforce in the community age of technology. >> the bottom line is that a cumulative $156 million deficit over the next ten years. even with no wage increases in the first four years. >> please help bart riders and the residents of the bay area avoid an even worse traffic nightmare than occurred just a few weeks ago by recommending to governor brown that he proceed with filing this action for a 60-day cooling off period. >> pursuant to the statute, we will not be making recommendations to the governor. >

tom vacar is live with the three factors considered even more important than cost. tom? >> reporter: well, this may sound a little odd. but here's why the contractor chosen to demolish the old bridge was not the lowest bidder. caltrans chose the firm with the least environmental harm. >> the steel 80 years ago was brand-new. but now it is cracked, rusted. >> reporter: after all the repairs, upgrades and especially retro fits, this is not the same bridge. that means taking it apart will be different too. >> this is challenging. >> reporter: this span is so different than when it was built, bridge engineers took all the construction documents and then fed them all into a state-of-the-art computer system, predicting what they need to do when its taken down. >> that is what we have to take down. that is what we have to deconstruct. so that is very, very important for us. all the information regarding the structure is embedded into it. it's an intelligent model. so we can talk to the model and it can talk back to us and make that information available to us. >> reporter: the

ktvu's consumer editor tom vacar is live outside the caltrans building where the negotiations are being held. tom? >> the most omnibus comments. they are bart board directors, they sat in on the negotiations. no prognosis. no major issues were discussed. bad feelings on both sides. least board involvement in 23 years. a strike is probable. it looks to be worse than the one 16 years ago. here is how the day began. >> reporter: relentless growths in benefits. >> contracts that continue to allow bart employees to pay nothing towards pensions and a flat rate for healthcare, those contracts are no longer sustainable. >> reporter: pensions are up 126% from 27 million a year to 59 million. projections show pension costs will grow 4% a year for the next 4 year. most employees of other government agencies contribute more than bart employee whose contribute nothing. >> we are just trying to play catch up what everyone else figured out how to do. >> reporter: healthcare sky rocketed 251%. from 26 million a year to 86 million. employees pay a flat $92 a month fee. making matters more problematic. m

tom vacar tells us don't expect miracles from the board of inquiry who is now reviewing the case. >>'s headed toward a strike. >> reporter: mike burneck is a former member of the b.a.r.t. board of directors that are still well connected to the current board. he said the credentials, a wide mix, the board of inquiry will have very little inquiry and duties. >> basically gathering information on the management offer, the labor offer and within seven days are going to summarize the offers and present them to the governor. they will not make a recommendation. they will not make a táe sis on which position is the right one. they will not tell the governor to do. >> reporter: all the governor can do is impose a cooling off period. it cannot fire negotiators. the solution is likely to come from influential people and corporations who will punish both sides if they fail to reach an agreement. because b.a.r.t. like the big banks that were too big to fail in the recession has probably now become too big to derail. tom vacar, ktvu channel 2 news. >>> more details now on the three members of tha

tom vacar, ktvu channel 2 news. >>> we are tracking high fire danger tonight. a red flag warning is in effect through wednesday. live pictures of contra costa county where as you can see conditions are dry. >> much of the same in the hills in the south bay. firefighters are on alert for lightning and fire. our chief meteorologist bill martin is tracking the conditions and joins us now. >> we have been talking about this. friday night last time i saw you, this low-pressure system pilling in moisture, a good chance for lightning. lightning around the bear valley area. notice how everything is moving this way? the low is over here, right? it is like this. it is pulling the showers off shore. check out this area. i will stop it. you will see we are looking at this area here. significant stuff. going the wrong way. not going to hit us. there is more moisture heading our way. red flag warning tonight and tomorrow and till 3:00 a.m. wednesday morning. could be gusty winds, lightning strikes possible. more moisture possible tomorrow. in 10:00 p.m. the red flag warning,

tom vacar tells us don't expect miracles from the board of inquiry who is now reviewing the case. >>it's headed toward a strike. >> reporter: mike burneck is a former member of the b.a.r.t. board of directors that are still well connected to the current board. he said the credentials, a wide mix, the board of inquiry will have very little inquiry and duties. >> basically gathering information on the management offer, the labor offer and within seven days are going to summarize the offers and present them to the governor. they will not make a recommendation. they will not make a táe sis on which position is the right one. they will not tell the governor to do. >> reporter: all the governor can do is impose a cooling off period. it cannot fire negotiators. the solution is likely to come from influential people and corporations who will punish both sides if they fail to reach an agreement. because b.a.r.t. like the big banks that were too big to fail in the recession has probably now become too big to derail. tom vacar, ktvu channel 2 news. >>> more details now on the three members of t

ktvu's tom vacar has been monitoring the progbut we start with ktvu's -- progress but we start with ktvu'sl chambers. supporters gather for a rally. >> reporter: that is create. there are hundreds of people out here. they are playing out here, they want to have a peaceful rally and a march later today. the closer we get to the deadline the more likely they believe another strike will happen. >> reporter: in oakland, a block and a half away from bart, last time bart went on strike it word word -- it hurt workers. >> they are coming to work, they don't have bart it is a problem. >> reporter: last month there were a lot of empty seats because his business relies on bart riders. without bart running a lot of people will be steaming. >> it is horrible. awful. >> reporter: people are holding on for dear life. hoping the talks won't leave them without transportation. >> i leave on tuesday and yes,ish if bart is not running it will be very hard. >> the working people are depending on bart. >> reporter: people are hoping bart won't let them down. >> i might quit my job and apply for work at bart be

i am consumer editor tom vacar ktvu channel 2 news. >> more details on the construction. the bolts. they have not broken. they are being stretched in salt water to simulate rapid aging. >> those are still under tension and none have broken. that is good. >> the other update, investigators think the quick fix for the bridge will work. the bridge could be open before december. possible early opening decision could be made a week from now. >>> a new lawsuit just filed naming asiana airlines and boeing, the allegations and dropping test scores. the two factors leader say are behind the disappointing change in numbers. >>> ktvu channel 2 news starts right now with breaking news. >>> we begin with breaking news. new information in the disappearance of a 50-year-old woman. ktvu's eric rasmussen is live with new information on the disappearance of sandra coke. >> reporter: several law enforcement sources confirm police detained a man who might have knowledge that could help them into their investigation of sandra coke's disappearance. a friend dated him 20 years ago. sources say

tom vacar, ktvu channel 2 news. >> more details now on the cost of the eastern span of the bay bridge. when the decision was made to replace the bridge that was damaged in the 1989 earthquake caltrans estimated the cost at $1.3 billion. by 2001 it was 2.6 billion. 3 years later $5 billion. now they estimate the total cost at $6.4 billion. >>> now to our coverage of the looming bart strike. the clock is ticking. you can see the count down live. we are now just 4 days, 5 hours and 58 minutes away from the august 4 expiration of the union's 30 day contract exspension the possibility of a -- ex56 the pocket of another -- extension the possibility of another strike. ktvu's cara liu has more. >> reporter: a spokesperson believes a strike can and should be avoided. union leaders told us they were still bargaining. negotiations started around 9:00 a.m. this morning here in oakland. leaders told us things were going well till the chief negotiator came back to town. bart acknowledged they needed to make changes but says workers need to contribute to the cost of their healthcare. meanwhile thous

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ktvu's tom vacar is on a tour with bridge crew members to find out the work that still needs to be done before the bridge closes in just over a week. we will have his full report tonight. and at the time, we'll also update you on a completed installation of the shims which are the temporary fix to the broken bolts until the permanent fix is completed in december. >>> more details on the 14 b.a.r.t. stations that plan to run overnight service during the bay bridge closure. beginning august 28th which is when the bay bridge will shut down, select stations will remain open 24 hours a day and offer hourly service. b.a.r.t. also plans to run longer trains during the day to accommodate commuters. however, all b.a.r.t. trains will stop running late monday night for required inspections and maintenance. the new span of the bay bridge will open the next morning, tuesday, september 3rd at 5:00 a.m. and ktvu.com has extensive coverage dedicated to the new bridge and next week's closure. look for the link under hot topics. >>> a major announcement from oakland police and federal officials. we'll te

tom vacar will do that and have it for you tonight. right now the work that's being done, crews are tearing down a section of the old bridge to make room for the approach to the new span. heavy machinery continues to pound away. all of this work started almost immediately after the closure and has not stopped since. crews are working around the clock to get this done. at the toll plaza, crews are grinding off old pavement between the tollbooths and the metering lights. >> once you get past the toeb and the metering lights, they will go down as deep as 6 inches to install a new drainage system and they will pave over that with new asphalt. drivers won't ono tis a drinks -- won't notice a difference. it will feel the same. >> reporter: yerba buena island, rerouting of the lanes is taking place bringing the rains from the tunnel to the -- lanes from the tunnel to the new span. this was the reason for building the s-kur s-curve. a lot of people didn't like that. caltrans says all of the planning is paying off now at this mage major -- payi

status of women and freelance reporter, josh richmond, bay area news group's politics reporter, tom vacarvu news consumer editor, and carla marunucci, st senior political writer. it is getting down to the wire for bart >> both side, getting pressure to resolve their differences and avoid a shutdown. at a union rally yesterday, after an act viivist danny glov spoke on behalf of supporters. >> as we come back to the table today, i think that the unions are interested in negotiating with us. and we are trying to find that right balance. the last thing i want to say is, even if we don't have a deal struck at, at midnight on sunday there are lots of avenue that can be pursued that don't have to end in the strike. >> that was bart general manager speaking at a press conference earlier this afternoon. tom, if you would, give us a summary what is the best argument each side is making? >> well, basically what bart wants is to get its unions, pension costs an health care costs under control. that's what bart wants. that's what they say guarantees their future. unions want to recoup from four years

tom vacar, ktvu channel 2 news. >>> a 100-year-old winery in the south bay held its annual blessing ofod, bless this new fruit of the vineyard. >> reporter: father chuck tilley from the sacred heart blessed the grapes harvested in los gatos. this is the winery's 126th harvest. the owners says his is the fourth oldest working in winery in california. he says the tradition of blessing grapes goes back to the 19th century. >>> bay area weekend is here. it's looking pretty good. tomorrow looks a lot like what we head today. lots of low 90s. there's some fog out there now and clouds moving in. we have fog out in the avenues. up in salsalito. and that fog working its way into the bay area. temperatures outside right now you have 57 in livermore. the winds are not that high tonight. look how much cooler it is. novato and san francisco. the on shore winds are keeping the bay cooler and keeping numbers in the 50s. then you get a little further inland and you get the warmth which is what we get every night. looks like it's going to be nice tomorrow, a lot like today. maybe even a chance for a th

ktvu's consumer editor tom vacar got a look at how vitethal pieces are and how they are be dag vitalare and how they are being made. >> the bolts can't hold the main earthquake structure together so here in this buildings they are building a replacement saddle. >> reporter: they invited the media to see the progress being made on the saddles for the eastern span of the bay bridge. >> another is made here and another in alabama. >> reporter: 3-inch thick steel plates are being bent into shape and then a cutter hollows out pathways for steel cables will run to lash the saddles. >> 27 cables running through. >> reporter: to create the pathway you have to mill them out out of the metal, creating millions of slivers of metal. it will be surrounded by concrete to complete the permanent fix. >> once you put them in and lock them off you fill the void so it will never be exposed to elements again. >> reporter: this system will be in place fully sometimes in december but there is still a chance the bridge

tom vacar, ktvu channel 2 news. >>> a 100-year-old winery in the south bay held its annual blessing ofs today. >> lord god, bless this new fruit of the vineyard. >> reporter: father chuck tilley from the sacred heart blessed the grapes harvested in los gatos. this is the winery's 126th harvest. the owners says his is the fourth oldest working in winery in california. he says the tradition of blessing grapes goes back to the 19th century. >>> bay area weekend is here. it's looking pretty good. tomorrow looks a lot like what we head today. lots of low 90s. there's some fog out there now and clouds moving in. we have fog out in the avenues. up in salsalito. and that fog working its way into the bay area. temperatures outside right now you have 57 in livermore. the winds are not that high tonight. look how much cooler it is. novato and san francisco. the on shore winds are keeping the bay cooler and keeping numbers in the 50s. then you get a little further inland and you get the warmth which is what we get every night. looks like it's going to be nice tomorrow, a lot like today. maybe even

tom vacar is live now on treasure island with some new video of the temporary fix for those busted boltsat's really what's making the opening of the new bridge in two weeks really possible. >> reporter: it is possible. let's just hop and go up there right now. driving up on the new bridge gets easier every time we do because less and less construction equipment is up there. today the biggest media turn out in years. bridge lane striping has been under way for days but there's so much bridge there's much more to do. and other things like putting up reflective signs. many testings are on the way, including this. an electronic sign that will alert drivers to hazard. workers are still tuning systems. not yet to yerba buena island await installation. connectors requires the shifting of lane barriers. all of this moves faster as the singest most important thing is done. >> the shims were put in over the weekend successfully. which mean it is bridge has achieved the level of seismic level necessary to open up over the holiday weekend. >> reporter: it is fair to say that this is now the stronges

reporting live, tom vacar, ktvu news. >>> and we go to how transit workers are stockpiling food, rob. >> reporter: an ac transit bus is now arriving here at broadway. but few how much longer? more than 180,000 passengers ride ac transit each day. we have the stories of two of those passengers who desperately hope ac transit workers do not go on strike. this mother -- for this mother of four ac transit is not only a comfort, it's a need. her son has to get to the doctor. >> i can't even do what i would do without ac transit. so i'm not sure what to do. i'm a little worried, a lot worried actually. >> reporter: he says she has no idea how she'll get to the doctor if there is a strike or how she will get any where else for that matter. her bus came today not sure about tomorrow. >> we would have to ask one of our relatives or friends for a ride. which is not likely. >> reporter: the strike would also strand hundreds of low income people living on alameda point at what used to be the alameda air station. >> ac transit strike is really freaking me out. >> reporter: that's because there's o