Big bond money for Tracy transit

Tracy voters, here's your reward for passing Proposition 1B — $500,000 for the multimodal transit station in downtown.

The money, care of the San Joaquin Council of Governments, is part of the county's $2.5 million cut of the $136 million in bond funding set aside for statewide transit projects. Of course, with the governor ready to raid statewide public transit funding from the state general budget to the tune of $1.4 billion, it looks like a wash.

In any case, for Tracy's future, it's imperative that this $500,000 be used effectively and efficiently. It's a sprawling city, and when gas hits $7 a gallon (who knows when? but you know it's coming) we'll live to regret the planning of the past. An attractive, functional transit system will help keep Tracy alive with traffic and commerce when driving across town becomes prohibitively expensive.

When most of us find ourselves hopping the 10:20 bus to the West Valley Mall, we'll be thankful for that $500 grand.