Schwarzenegger seeks funds for highway collapse

OAKLAND, California (Reuters) - California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger sought federal aid on Monday to help the state rebuild a collapsed section of a busy freeway near San Francisco.

The section in the so-called MacArthur Maze in nearby Oakland, California, fell on Sunday when its metal structure melted amid an intense fire caused by the crash of a fuel tanker truck.

The loss of the section threatens to lengthen the commutes of hundreds of thousands of workers who normally cross the busy tangle of highways to the Bay Bridge en route to jobs in San Francisco. Schwarzenegger also requested federal aid to help pay for traffic detours and boosting public transit.

Many Bay Area residents feared a hellish Monday morning commute but local transit agencies provided free rides on buses and trains and there were no serious delays.

"It would have been worse if it happened this morning," said Angela Narvasa as she waited for a train in El Cerrito, California, a town north of Oakland. "That would have created more chaos. Everyone seems to be prepared."

Others fret the worst may come after Monday, when free public transport ends.