my friend is going to that show and i'm very jealous. we have a lot going on at 5:30. first of all, do you feel safe riding on b.a.r.t.? the new numbers that feel an increased effort by the agency to crackdown on crime. also, trying to make streets around the school safer, the new proposal that would help drivers watch out for kids walking and biking to school, and we investigate the dark side of weight loss drugs. they have become extremely popular. what you need to know before trying ozempic or mounjaro. welcome back. the news at 5:30 starts right now. thanks so much for joining us. i am janelle wang. >> and i am garvin thomas. b.a.r.t. says it's plan to have more officers patrolling trains appears to be paying off. felony arrests more than doubled last year compared to 2022 and officers seized more firearms during that same time period. this comes as b.a.r.t. works to hire more officers but does all that equal to riders

feeling safer on the train? christie smith answers that question. >> reporter: marisol bills relies on b.a.r.t. to get around. she says recently she's noticed a difference on board. >> people are aggressive but now it's better. i see it is cleaner, and i see more police interaction when there is a problem. >> reporter: she says seen police and other changes matter. >> it makes me feel better and safer. >> reporter: the transit agency says felony arrest on b.a.r.t. increased 62% last year compared to 2022. part officers log 726 felony arrest in 2023 compared to 448 the prior year. >> we are making a lot of good arrests and addressing the issues that i think our employees and customers are most concerned about.

>> reporter: b.a.r.t. police chief kevin franklin says the agency has been working to make changes. >> last year, we made probably the single biggest change in our employment strategy that i have seen in my 27 years here at the b.a.r.t. police department, and that was to really emphasize patrol routes for sworn police officers and unarmed civilians who are out there in the system. >> reporter: he says there are also uniformed ambassadors and even crisis intervention specialist to work with police to address people in crisis about connecting people to services. meantime today, b.a.r.t. shared several images of examples of guns recently seized. 49 illegal guns were seized last year, up from 40 and 2022. we ask riders what they've seen. >> i've seen more police officers in the stations but not really on the trains.

>> reporter: b.a.r.t. is working hard to recruit new officers to fill vacancies. the police chief also addressed any riders who may be skeptical about taking public transit. >> acknowledge that many people are skeptical about safety in public transit right now and i really hope they give us another chance to come back to b.a.r.t. and see the amount of work we've put in the system , and the positive impact it is having. >> reporter: christie smith, nbc bay area news. california lawmakers are taken steps to make school zones safer. they are proposing a safety measure to help protect kids walking and biking to school, called the safer school zones act. the proposal was announced that elementary school in campbell this morning. that school is just blocks away from where eight-year-old jacob the and whatever was hit kill it

-- hit and killed by a car walking to school two years ago. this would lower speed zones in school zones to 20 miles per hour or less and establish more straightforward standards in place of signage that says when children are present. >> a lot of people don't realize they're in a school zone. they see the school zone signer the when children are present and they take their eyes off the road. having it be clearly delineated, the timing for when you need to do that makes it so much easier for drivers to comply with the law. >> for example like 7:00 to 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. charter school in east san jose will be closing its doors for good. since the pandemic hits in 2020, and roman at the cpl and rock high school has decreased by 30%. school executives say they will face the nearly $2 million

deficit because of low enrollment so earlier this month the school board voted to close the school. more than 200 students will have to transfer when the campus closes this summer. the alum rock community has pushed back on the decision to close, and students have started a petition to try to keep the school open. some san francisco schools missing be on the chopping block but the school district is starting to see a positive shift in enrollment. application numbers are on the rise for the first time in years. earlier this month, san francisco unified said it is considering closing some schools due to low enrollment. how many, in which schools, are still yet to be determined but the district has seen thousands of new applications this year so far, going up specifically in transitional kindergarten which coincides with state requirements changing. the district is also facing other major challenges, including a $400 million budget deficit. it is the weight latest weight loss trend with a powerful hollywood influence, but there are negative side effects to ozempic that are not necessarily medical but potentially harmful. what you should know before asking your dock for the drug. >> reporter: drugs like ozempic

and mounjaro have been around for years treating diabetes but doctors tell me the recent awards season hollywood weight- loss list has caused not just a dangerous prescription shortage that we have reported on, but also a black market. >> just happens to be my mounjaro shot day. >> in the last 10 months i've lost almost 70 pounds. >> reporter: from tiktok to the red carpet. >> for 25 years, making fun of my weight was national sport >> reporter: to a recent oprah special, the popularity of a new class of weight loss drugs like ozempic and mounjaro has skyrocketed, which is led to high demand, putting diabetes patients at high risk.

>> for the last 10 months now, i've been trying to get the mounjaro prescription and all the pharmacies have been out of it. >> reporter: carlos is not just trying to manage his diabetes. he is also recovering from triple bypass heart surgery earlier this month. >> reporter: do you feel patients like yourself are being overlooked? >> yes i definitely feel that way, that people don't really care about people with diabetes. they just care about their own self, about losing weight. >> a lot of my patients have been going through the same struggle. >> reporter: dr. marilyn chan's chief of stanford's endocrine clinic. she says a number of patients with diabetes have ended up in the emergency room with high blood sugar levels because they were not able to get there ozempic or mounjaro prescriptions. >> this is not an uncommon scenario. >> reporter: who is in charge of prioritizing these medicines to maybe have it go to someone who needs it for a medical reason versus someone who wants

it for ascetic weight loss? >> part of the role is in prescribers but even then, patients will take compounded semaglutide or buy it on the black market. i hear about patients buying it on facebook, patients end up sometimes buying various medications online and then also, i've heard about patients going to, for example, mexico and buying it at the airport in, son lucas. >> reporter: the doctor shared with us this photo her friend took of a drugstore inside kabul's airport just last month. >> some people are abusing medicine never meant for them. >> reporter: early this month three days before the oscars, montrose manufacturer, lily, released this up a letter saying it stands against the use of its medicines for cosmetic weight loss. it is meant for the treatment of serious diseases, but the fda has also approved mounjaro

for chronic weight management. to the everyday person, this feels like mixed messaging and it is impacting patients. >> i got friends calling me and say no, i heard you have mounjaro, can you get me some? it's like crazy, you know. this is for people who have diabetes. >> medical experts say treating obesity with meds can help with a host of other medical issues but it is critical you go through a licensed healthcare provider who can also help provide drug alternatives. dr. tan ones about counterfeit weight loss drugs or compounded drugs meaning their combined with something else. according to the manufacturer, in at least one instance, a compounded product was nothing more than sugar alcohols. with the investigative unit, i am candice nguyen. nbc bay area news. one bay area viewer found out the hard way, your windshield could be making you

pay. we will help someone find -- fight hundreds of dollars in toll charges. nbc bay area responds next.

nbc bay area responds to an east bay viewer who was fighting hundreds of dollars of fast-track charges. >> her battle might help you figure out if you are overpaying for tolls. >> reporter: on 680, cruising the express lane is free if two or more people are in the car. you have a fast-track flex, and you switch it to multiple

people. this person commutes with a friend and says her fast-track expected a free ride but over and over recently, 48 times, fast-track charged her for using the fast lane. she says she disputed the charges but fast-track would not reverse them. >> it was just such a long and kind of frustrating journey to have to keep going back and forth. >> finally, she asked our team for help. we reached out to the bay area toll authority who operates fast-track. >> this is a subject that toll agencies around the country are dealing with. >> reporter: the subject is that some cars when shields are

coated with a thin layer of metal oxide, a chemical that blocks uv rays but that coding can block radio waves from toll tags like the fast track, and in some cars, you have to put the toll tag in a particular place to actually transmit. >> that sweet spot is going to vary from vehicle to vehicle -- different makes, different models even different years. >> reporter: so how do you know? it's probably in your owners manual. the guide for asal's ford mustang discusses toll tag placement, albeit way back on page 351. that nugget surprised her. >> i don't think people would think that that type of information would be in the owners manual. >> reporter: so, asal had the right tag, just in the wrong place. fast-track research the dilemma and refunded her in full. she also moved her toll tag from the lower left corner to where ford says it should be. >> all the way up there by the review mirror, like next to it there's a dotted area.

>> reporter: any time you buy a new car or think you are overpaying for tolls, fast- track folks recommend you check your owners manual, see if your windshield is potentially a problem and whether you have to put your transmitter in a specific spot. >> we've seen this happen with some frequency, particularly with some models of tesla's. >> reporter: since she moved her fast-track, asal says she is getting the discount she expected but is still watching her bill each month looking for surprises. we recommend that for any bill on auto pay. asal contacted us online. you can, too. scan the qr code you see on the screen right now to fill out our consumer complaint form online. >> i do check my fast-track bill every month because you just never know. >> it's hard because you have to find that sweet spot and even though the manual says it, it's not always exactly the right spot. >> i didn't even know that was a problem. >> and the other thing, too, is the old transponders used to make like a beeping noise.

some of the new ones don't so when you're driving through it's hard to know at that time if it's working. right. >> oh yeah, the new ones don't. if they do make a sound when you switch from one to three passengers it beeps three times. we can talk about this forever. we got some rain out there if you're going to be going through the fast-track line or anywhere across the bay area. we have all those details. i went through some of that myself so i feel your pain if you are out there trying to sort things out into that accounting. we are looking at the storm system tomorrow, saturday and easter sunday living right and on the coastline hoping to bring us not only some rain back, but thunderstorms through the weekend and a cold blast of air, so have that umbrella out along with the jacket. let's move you through the timeline here. 7:00 tomorrow, storm system is just starting to move into the coast. we will see that rain return heaviest first step toward northbay at 11:00 in the morning than where i really want you to watch out for is

one, two, and 3:00 tomorrow afternoon when the storm front itself is going to move on top of the bay area, some extremely heavy downpours. really don't want to be out driving around in this for the early part of the afternoon. then, we see the rain break up, too. scattered rain chances through 5:00 p.m. to 10:00 at night. tomorrow we are expecting anywhere from one quarter to three quarters of an inch for throughout the bay area. as we had through saturday's forecast we will see this next wave of energy move across the bay area for scattered thunderstorms chances from saturday morning into saturday afternoon then, as we head into sunday for easter sunday, right now it looks good for any kind of egg hunts you might have happening on the front lawn. right now it does like dry with a mix of sun and clouds but then we would see the chance of thunderstorms return back here as we had through the afternoon so all in all we will see rain

chances continuing through the weekend. tomorrow, one quarter to three quarters of an inch for most of the bay although the santa cruz mountains could get in on about an inch and it becomes less in the way of overall rain totals on saturday. it is a quarter to about a half- inch then my sunday for easter, trace amounts to about a 10th of an inch so gradually we will see those rain chances stepping down as we head into sunday's forecast. otherwise we begin tomorrow with 40s throughout the bay area. for the east bay 47 and right here 48. look at this, just 56 degrees in san jose. 53 in concord. 56 here in redwood city and 49 in clearlake. if you're going to the sierra, additional snow tomorrow and saturday upwards of about one foot, maybe more for the

highest elevations by sunday. on the seven-day forecast, we dry out and warm up as we had through next week. 70s. we are going to be able to thaw out. we are in a window of what looks to be dry weather for easter morning so i think the parents, the kids are going to be happy about that. now, it is not a holiday but it feels like one for baseball fans.

a's fans are protesting outside the coliseum right now. inside the players are tearing up. >> reporter: so much of the attention surrounding the a's is about their relocation to las vegas or as you just mentioned, boycotting here in oakland. the players are doing their best to keep their focus where it belongs, on the field. they had the worst record in baseball last season and expectations outside their own dugout are not much better for

this season. oakland did little in the off- season to add more star power to their lineup but it's opening day and that brings new hope. emotions will be high for this game. they could be the a's last opening day at the coliseum. >> if this is the last opening day, i know i am right where i want to be in very honored to be part of it. my heart is with the fans, you know. i understand the emotion of the impact that when they come out, they come out with support, with love, and they do it full force. you know, and i think for us tonight, the focus is going to be on the game in the beginning of an amazing 2024 season. >> reporter: win or lose, this will be an historic game. jenny caviar in the green dress and black jacket is the a's new lead tv announcer, the first woman to serve as the primary play-by-play voice. former giants pitcher alex

wood gets the start tonight on the hill for the a's and speaking of the giants, they open their season on the road this afternoon in san diego . bob melvin in the dugout for his first game as the new manager of the orange and black. top seven, giants play catch- up. nick ahmed delivers an rbi single. the giants had a 3-2 lead but the padres would score four runs in the bottom of the seventh. a solo home run in the top of the ninth, but not enough. giants lose their season opener by the final score of 6-4. back out here live at the coliseum, where the a's open up their season tonight against the cleveland guardians and i know i'm fired up for baseball. so are these guys, right? johnny is throwing out the first pitch. you ready to go? >> oh, yeah. let's go. >> we will have highlights the newson

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pope francis perform the traditional easter ritual of this holy thursday but with a new twist. holy thursday commemorates jesus washing the feet of his 12 disciples and gathering for the last supper sewing room, pope francis went to a prison and washed and kissed the feet of 12 female inmates to show his service and humility.

he did that all from his wheelchair. pope francis is the first pope to include women, atheists, muslims and other non- christians in this ritual. in the past, the pope performed this ritual only with men, and mostly priests. the countdown to the olympics is on. last year, organizers said they were hoping to install the flame of the eiffel tower. now, they plan to put it in the bank of the river seine. between the live in the plaster concorde. right now at 6:00, how to make san francisco streets safe. 10 years since the city committed to preventing traffic deaths. today, leaders are being called out. the response is what some see as a lack of progress.

is ready to call it a career. san francisco police chief anthony mata is retiring after nearly 30 years on the force. his thoughts on the department's relationship with the community. but first, opening day at the coliseum and a large group of fans are not showing the same support as last year. we will take you to the boycott happening now as the team gets ready to call las vegas home. the news at 6:00 starts right now. thank you so much for joining us. >> it could be a historic night for a's fans. will this be the teams last home opener in oakland? first pitches in just about an hour and thousands of fans are expected at the coliseum tonight where valena jones is. >> reporter: these fans plan to stay here outside in the parking lot. they are expecting 10 to 20 fans to pack this parking lot in a boycott against the teams

ownership. you can see a lot of people out here today. we have games in the background, thousands of people have already showed up. you see everybody and their green with their cell flags. you see the block party here with the oakland symbol on it and of course, the marching band back there. these fan groups say the happiness they feel during opening day is gone as the a's plan to move to vegas. the tell me coming together is how they take back some of that joy. we are already seeing again a lot of those sell certain signs, and black as fans continue to ask a's ownership to sell the team. referred those chancellor tonight. a number of fan groups are organizing this boycott, including last dive bar. during the fifth inning, you'll start to hear honking from the parking lot to signal

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