The deal, announced Friday between the transit agency and its rail workers, averted a strike that would have thrown Monday’s commute into NY into chaos.
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“New Jersey Transit has come to a tentative agreement with the coalition comprised of all 11 unions, representing over 4,200 NJ Transit employees”, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie said Friday in Newark, New Jersey.
Christie said rail riders and commuters can expect “business as usual ” on Monday, a blessing considering the alternative: More than 300,000 people use NJ Transit trains on an average weekday, and the agency estimated more than 105,000 Manhattan commuters would be displaced”.
NJ Transit had roughly 70,000 passengers when rail workers went on strike for 34 days in March 1983.
Christie said it was done with the interest of taxpayers and fare payers in mind and that no fare hikes or service cuts are planned at least through June 2017.
He says the union needs an opportunity to release information to its members first.
Dellaverson said he felt there’s no reason the parties shouldn’t be able to reach an agreement Friday. “The remaining riders, almost 65,000, would likely have funneled as many as 10,000 cars an hour onto roads within 25 miles of NY during morning and evening rush hours, officials had said, jamming them into the already congested Lincoln and Holland Tunnels, and George Washington Bridge”.
The tentative agreement was reached Friday night about 32 hours before the Sunday strike deadline.
“I think both sides think they did very well”, he said.
“Thankfully for the commuters of New Jersey Transit the crisis is averted”, union spokesman Stephen Burkert said.
The agency had proposed a 10.9 percent raise over seven years and wanted workers to pay between 10 percent and 20 percent of their health care premium costs. You can tell when people are spoiling for a fight.
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“A strike was always the last option for New Jersey Transit workers, who have waited nearly five years for a fair contract”, said IAM Transportation General Vice President Sito Pantoja.
