Reporter firefighters are guaranteed about 70 of their income after retirement in their 50s and in san ramon, firefighters contribute close to 25 of their income to their pension. The Contra Costa Taxpayer Association believes the system wont work. Its unreasonable. Its unaffordable. Most importantly from a taxpayer perspective and from the perspective of the firefighters, its unstainable. Reporter but chief mayer says san ramon is an example of a Fire District doing things right. We have a sustainable system. We are paying all our unfunded liabilities. Were actually one of the only agencies i know in the United States that pays extra money towards our unfunded liabilities in retirement medical and pension costs. Reporter and the fire chief tells me that a starting firefighter here would make about 90,000 a year in salary alone. In san ramon, jessica flores, kpix 5. New at 6 00, your tax dollars not at work. We have learned that caltrain is paying millions of dollars for contractors to do nothing. Kpix 5s melissa caen live at the san Carlos Caltrain station to explain. Reporter allen, we all know the phrase, time is money and that is certainly true in this case. There are construction crews ready to go and begin a project to electrify caltrain tracks and build new train cars for the train system. But theres been a delay in federal funding. And every day that goes by now means taxpayer money. This whole project is about 2 billion and through our regional Funding Partners we have about 1. 2, 1. 3 billion. Reporter caltrain just needs a 647 million grant from the federal government to begin construction on a project that would electrify and upgrade the rail system but the request for the federal funds was not submitted in time to allow the Obama Administration to approve the money. The vice chair of the caltrain board of directors we worked very hard throughout the holiday period to get this on to the desk in washington, dc and just took longer than we thought. Reporter so now its up to the Trump Administration which did not immediately approve the funds. Caltrain spokesman Seamus Murphy says they will have to wait until april or may when the president s budget recommendations are released. I mean, i think its, um, um, um, normal at this stage for a new administration to want to take a close look at a major investment that, um, would be made. Reporter today, the caltrain board of directors approved spending up to 20 million to keep the project going for the next few months while they wait for a decision. I asked, what is that 20 million spent on . Making sure that our contractors are Still Available to us to Start Construction when the full Funding Grant agreement is, um, is awarded. Reporter so were paying 20 to keep contractors around . Yes. Reporter there is some design work and other preparation being done but even that has been slowed way down. The project has a reserve of 360 million. So 20 million wont break the bank. Still, its a lot of money to keep these contracts sputtering along. Its a lot of money but we also dont what to have delays on the back end. We are supposed to be in service by 2021. So we dont want to have, you know, a monthtomonth oneto one delay. We want to keep forward motion. Delays are not free. Reporter now, we reached out to the two main contractors on this project. And one of them did not respond to our request for comments. The other simply said it had no comment. Live in san carlos, melissa caen, kpix 5. Uber is making a uturn when it comes to selfdriving car tests. It now says it will apply for the state permit that it needs to test those cars on public streets. It comes nearly two months after the dmv yanked the registration on ubers autonomous fleet. Uber had argued it didnt need that permit because the self driving volvos always have a backup driver behind the wheel. Meanwhile, former uber engineer susan fowler has now hired a lawyer claiming the company is blaming her for a dropoff in users. She tweeted today uber names blames me for account deletes and has a Different Law Firm investigating me. She says she has now retained a palo alto law firm. In a blog post last month fowler alleged that her complaints about her boss unwanted sexual advances were ignored because he was a star employee. The company has its own attorneys looking into those claims. Bart just got slapped with a lawsuit claiming security gaps are leading to crime. It comes after a 12yearold boy was robbed at gunpoint at the del norte station. According to that familys suit the robber was able to corner the boy where there were no cameras. It also says bart failed to release a composite sketch in order to avoid bad press. Bart denies allegations saying, quote, the claim we are lackadaisical in following up with allegations of crime in the system is wrong in the strongest of terms. Bart says it shared a sketch with other lawsuit agencies and says its investigators went through hours of footage of cameras and didnt find victim or suspect. There is a new Ferry Service hitting bay waters with the promise of easing some commuter congestion. The new route connects the Berkeley Marina and San Franciscos pier 1 1 2 just north of the ferry building. Kpix 5s da lin one of those on one of those ferries at the marina right now. Da. Reporter they just dropped off 24 passengers at the Berkeley Marina now going back to San Francisco to pick up more passengers. Now, aside from high winds, theres really nothing that can disrussian president this boat. They are garn that can disrussian president this boat. They are guaranteed 20 minutes across the bay. The captain hopes this is the new alternative to the constant gridlock on the bay bridge. Reporter i80 one of the most congested freeways in the bay area. Just starting to clog up more all day long whereas before there was rush hour. Reporter it typically jams up all the way to the toll plaza. Heres how it looked at 10 15 this morning. Not a lot of room on bart trains either. Thats why this could be the new trend for east bay and berkeley commuters. We are part of the fabric of the Transportation System in the bay area. Reporter the Berkeley Marina isnt deep enough for large ferries. They transport people between berkeley and San Francisco in smaller boats. Capacity, 40 people. 20minute trip. And 8 bucks each way. You get your time back. Its what it comes down to. Time back with your family. You are getting a much more pleasant experience going to and from work. Reporter the operator says aside from saving time, their selling point is the stress free atmosphere. Free wifi, tv and wine. On the way back home if you want to throw back a beer on the way home, thats also a nice thing to have. People seem to really enjoy it being able to see whats going on during the commute, seeing whats happening, like, you know, how we navigate the bay. Reporter its a new service. So far, most of the passengers work in the financial district. Commuters i talked to say for 8, they will give it a try. I think its a great idea. Sounds like its a little more intimate, a little faster. Reporter we have been on this boat since 5 00 for about an hour. I can tell you the experience is very pleasant, not very rough at all. In fact, pretty calm going to San Francisco. And coming back to berkeley. They only run on weekdays. And starting tomorrow, folks canby their tickets right here at the can buy their tickets right here at the boarding area. Live at the Berkeley Marina, da lin, kpix 5. Its going to be years until crews finish installing a suicide barrier on the Golden Gate Bridge. That barrier will be completed in january of 2021. Engineers and contractors have already begun working on it. The project involves installing netting along the 1. 7mile bridge and could cost as much as 204 million. Take a look at this. Sky drone 5 giving us a unique view of apples near complete spaceship campus. Apples new headquarters will be in cupertino just off 280 near wolfe road. Kpix 5s devin fehely is there with a big news apple announcement today. Reporter veronica, the spaceship will blast off or more accurately movein day will be next month. It is longawaited by employees and people who live, work and shop nearby. Its from the air that the size and scale of apples new campus can best be appreciated. A perfect circle a mile around. Sky drone 5 helped us capture these unique aerial images of apples new headquarters into which 12,000 of its employees will finally begin moving next month. Thats a big bulk of the construction is done. My friends are relieved its all done and over. For the most part. Reporter apple broke ground on the new campus affectionately nicknamed the spaceship in 2013 and will spend the rest of the year putting the finishing touches on the building and surrounding landscaping. While occasionally inconvenienced by the construction, jimmy says he was also excited to see the iconic building take shape. They are going for that clean aesthetic, the cutting edge. So i think this is cool. Whenever you look at the building, you know that youre looking at the same building and its going to look the same from all 360 degrees. Reporter apples been cagey. Their spokespeople wont name the cost although most people say its 5 billion but customers say they would expect no less for a company known for its Cutting Edge Technology and innovative design. They didnt invent the cell phone either but they revolutionize things. They stir things up, spice it up, you know, take it up another notch. So spaceship is really just something historical. Reporter now, apple says this is a soft opening so to speak. Its actually going to take about 6 months for all of those employees to move into the new building. And if you are curious, there is a part of the new headquarters that will be open to the public. Theres going to be an apple store but theres no word yet on specifically weather that will open up. In cupertino, devin fehely, kpix 5. Well, in the bay area housing market, its hard to compete with all cash. Now new signs of a crackdown overseas is good news for the average home buyer. And we have heard your complaints. Pg e bills soaring the command for regulators to step in and control the sticker shock. Oh, snap Bay Area High School making a windfall from snapchats wall street debut. Kpix 5 hidef Doppler Radar is dry right now but as we approach the weekend on a 70 degree day for some of you today, eh, were talking about some rain moving in. Find out which day is going to be the wettest next. ,,,,,,,,, crack into the redhot housing market. Kpix 5s le good news for frustrated bay area home buyers. Getting a little easier to crack into the redhot housing market. Kpix 5s len ramirez on the new rules suddenly leaving the competition strapped for cash. Reporter in the bay areas superheated Real Estate Market we only have five months of inventory today. Reporter one thing is slowing down. Overseas investors paying cash. We are starting to see some of the chinese money thats coming in, instead of being all cash, there are 40 or 50 down buyer as opposed to all cash. Reporter data from the mls shows how much all cash sales have slowed. In 2012, there were 3612 all cash sales in santa clara county. By 2016, the number had dropped to 2297. Thats a 6 decrease in four years. The reason for the decline has been a crackdown by the Chinese Government on money leaving mainland china. New currency export rules mean that chinese investors cant get as many dollars as they once did to invest in american property. Before the sky was the limit for chinese investors. Local realtors would fly them around the bay area to pick out Luxury Properties from the air. For others it was tough luck competing. It puts the buyer at a massive advantage over someone who has to go through the typical buying process of financing and all the other inspections as well. Reporter one of those shut out buyers is robert escobar. It was at least six times i was outdone by somebody who paid full cash. Reporter he is a semi retired Human Resources professional who wants back in the home market after being forced to short sale an underwater property during the bust. Good news for those who can afford a house at todays prices, its a little late for me. Reporter forced to the sidelines in part by all cash buyers a few years ago, he is now priced out of the market. In san jose, len ramirez, kpix 5. The Public Utilities commission got an earful today. They heard from customers who are angry about soaring pg e bills. Lemoore abrams says the puc listened but may not take action. Its very unfair. Reporter Phillip Traynor knows about gas. The cost to public and businesses is out of line. Reporter 30 years ago he owned his own power plant on his marysville farm. When his gas bill spiked 500 this winter he reenergized. You can buy gas for 25 cents cents a therm. We paid 1. 61 a therm to pg e. Reporter he took his outrageous bills stuffed them in an envelope with close to 100 of his neighbors bills and today showed them to the people who set the rates. [ inaudible ] reporter he wasnt alone. Im the face of a middle Class Consumer in placer county. Reporter angry users demand to know whether the regulators the Public Utilities commission will do something to alleviate the sticker shock so we asked puc Energy Director edward randolph. So what needs to be done from here . Um, the the puc is going to do some research into the factors that led to this particular, um, um, set of sticker shock so to say, um, and make some recommendations. Reporter recommendations including lowering winter rates a proposal by senator jerry hill whose investigation into big pg e bills reveals people are paying more because of infrastructure costs and colder weather. So will the puc roll back rates . No. The director says commissioners will reconsider a future rate hike proposed by pg e. The commissioners will look at that further to see if theres other places where, um, spending, um, may be cut. Reporter consumer advocates say thats not good enough. What senator hill is looking at is trying to push the commission and pg e to lower rates right now because right now is when customers are having the problem. Reporter the puc director says its unclear when new rates will be decided. At the state capital, lemor abrams, kpix 5. Pg e is looking into the recommendations made by state senator jerry hill but any changes have to be approved by the puc. Good news for residents on Morgan Territory road in brentwood. Water could be restored as early as tomorrow morning. Last week, this massive mudslide wiped out water lines in the area. According to the Water District today, crews were given the go ahead to install a temporary water bypass. Tonight californias five year drought is almost completely wiped out. The latest map shows 91 of the state is now drought free. And almost all of that progress has happened just in the past two months. Take a look at the map from the beginning of the year. Thats when about 83 of california was still in some stage of drought. What a difference. Better. Absolutely amazing. Much better. Surface water is wonderful. We are getting a lot of emails saying what about the ground water . For every one gallon theres 100 underground. We are add together ground water. Well be add to the surface water your backyard coming up this weekend. We have rain coming on the heels of a 70degree day. Look at berkeley you hit the mid60s today. Nice to be on one of those boats right now. The Berkeley Marina looking gorgeous. We are cloudfree in the background. We live in paradise, folks. Heres another view from the bay bridge. Santa rosa hit 70. Half moon bay 67. San francisco 65. San jose 66. Radar is clear. That will change saturday morning. North of santa rosa, this is typically the time of year when we see a decrease of rainfall. February one of the wettest months. March, not so much. And then by april, we only average 1 1 2 inches of rainfall and then may June July August and september all added together dont give us one inch of rain so we have a clearly defined wet season and dry season and were nearing the end of our wet season. But its going to rain this weekend. Our ridge of High Pressure that gave us 70 degrees is beginning to move away opening the door for a moderate storm system not very strong and not here for that long. But it will arrive saturday morning in the far north bay and cross into golden gate likely right around sunset saturday night. So we are mainly clear and cool tonight. Not going to call it cold because well stay above freezing but not by that much. Santa rosa 35. Concord 37. Low 40s fremont, mountain view, redwood city and san jose. Sun in the morning tomorrow. We are going to go cloudy by tomorrow afternoon the first time that things are changing. Still warm, still near or above average. 64 for san jose. Fremont 62. Fairfield 65. And pacifica, a high of 57 degrees. But that sets the stage for rainfall. Some showers or light rain in the north bay saturday afternoon. Moving south saturday night and well see some scattered showers even continuing into sunday. So we continue to say its not a washout. Nothing like what we experienced in january or february but the timing, weekend, Outdoor Activities will be impacted by rain. Monday sunshine comes back and by this time next week well be in the mid to upper 60s perhaps even low 70s. Thats your kpix 5 forecast. Thank you. [ music ] a new Bay Area School ge