The NJ Transit train strike is over, Save Jerseyans.
On Sunday evening, Governor Phil Murphy announced what was described as “a tentative agreement” with the train operator union, the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers & Trainmen (BLET).
Service won’t resume immediately; according to the Governor’s office, “[r]ail cars and infrastructure must undergo safety inspections, movable bridges that were open must be closed into place and equipment must be at the proper locations to resume,” adding that NJ Transit “has immediately begun those efforts and is advancing them as quickly and safely as possible.”
Ordinary weekday train service begins again on Tuesday, May 20th.
Additional buses are still being made available on Monday as a way to lessen the sting for stranded commuters, but only about 20,000 of the 350,000 estimated daily riders will be able to avail themselves of the limited number of available bus seats.
“I am pleased to announce that we have reached a fair and fiscally responsible contract settlement that provides a generous wage increase for BLET members while saving taxpayers and customers the burden of fare increases,” said Governor Murphy. “This agreement reflects the commitment of both the BLET and NJ TRANSIT to remain at the table engaging in productive conversations, and I commend them both. Most importantly, it ensures the resumption of rail service for the 100,000 people who depend on our rail system on a daily basis.”
Full details of the settlement haven’t yet been released. The operators were asking for more money and the Administration resisted despite overseeing profligate waste at NJ Transit over the past several years.
“This strike is not just about contract disputes. It’s the culmination of years of fiscal mismanagement and the wrong priorities at NJ Transit — failures we warned about over a year ago,” state Senator Latham Tiver (R-8) explained on Friday. “The public deserves to know how one of the state’s most critical agencies is spending its money — and clearly, it’s not where it’s most needed.
