A bus strike is looming in Phoenix after members of the Amalgamated Transit Union voted overwhelmingly Wednesday to authorize a work stoppage for 700 drivers who operate many of the city’s busiest routes.
Ongoing negotiations between the drivers union and the French-based company Transdev, which contracts with the city for the majority of its public bus service, have broken down and those drivers are now officially working without a contract.
Transdev has now submitted what it calls its “last and final” offer. But Robert Bean, who is president of the ATU’s Local 1433, is unimpressed.
“What I’ve seen so far, it’s garbage. There’s a lot of issues in there that I cannot recommend to the members whatsoever. It’s closer than I thought it would be, but it’s still miles apart,” he said.
Drivers are scheduled to vote on Transdev’s offer by next Friday, and Bean said only after that would they walk off the job.
A strike would affect the majority of Phoenix’s 49 bus routes and disrupt service citywide.
