Santa Clara VTA installs Woodward as chair, Chavez as vice chair

The Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority's (VTA) board late last week elected Gilroy Mayor Pro Tempore Perry Woodward as chairman and County Supervisor Cindy Chavez as vice chair for 2015.

A VTA board member since 2010 who served as vice chair in 2014, Woodward will lead the agency through the "Envision Silicon Valley" process, its effort to identify Santa Clara County's transportation network gaps and potential solutions, authority officials said in a press release.

In addition, Woodward — who also serves on Caltrain's board — will lead the agency's planning for the second phase of the BART Silicon Valley Extension, they said.

Chavez was a VTA board member from 1998 to 2006 while he served as a San Jose, Calif., council member, and returned to the board in 2013 as a county supervisor. She currently chairs the board's Administration and Finance Committee.