Public Transit Strike
Oct 29th, 2007 at 8:55 pm by Susie
This would be a real disaster:
Amtrak workers who have been without a labor contract for seven years have rejected arbitration in their long-running battle, starting a countdown toward what would be the first-ever strike against the nation’s passenger railroad.
A strike, which could not occur until early next year, would also disrupt commuter railroads, including SEPTA and NJ Transit, which operate some of their trains on Amtrak tracks and rely on Amtrak dispatchers.
The possibility of a strike comes at a time of increasing ridership on Amtrak and commuter lines, and against a backdrop of long-standing antipathy toward Amtrak subsidies by the Bush administration.
By yesterday’s deadline, all nine Amtrak unions had rejected an offer of arbitration from the National Mediation Board in Washington.
It would only be a disaster here in the Northeast, upon which most of the country wishes a double dose of Katrina.
We should expect no help…