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Feiner Speaks Out on The Bus Strike
Posted on Wednesday, March 09 @ 16:36:46 EST by jfbailey
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WPCNR'S THE FEINER REPORT. By Greenburgh Town Supervisor, Paul Feiner. March 9, 2005: Some commuters have received the following e mail from the County Executive’s office about the bus strike. I have been receiving lots of calls from constituents who have been suffering as a result of the strike. This bus strike is causing a tremendous amount of hardship. I believe that all sides (including the county) should lock themselves in a room and not come out until the strike is settled. Or, there should be a cooling off period—with the drivers back on the job while negotiations continue. Elected officials have an obligation, in my opinion, to take action steps to end this crisis.
I’d appreciate hearing from you – some of the commuters who have contacted me in the past (when the Westchester-NYC bus service was threatened with discontinuation). What do you think I should be doing to help end the strike? I want to play a positive role and look forward to your input. PAUL FEINER
The e-mail from the County Executive, with refund information for passport holders follows:
Thank you for your emails to the County Executive and DOT Commissioner Lawrence Salley. Please know that we appreciate hearing from you directly on the hardships your homeowner association members are experiencing during this very difficult time.
With the bus strike now in it's 6th day, the County Executive is extremely frustrated over the fact that the union refuses to budge from their demand to retire at age 57, after only 20 years of service, with full pension and health benefits, and that they are seemingly unwilling to compromise when management has made compromises. The union is holding the riders, taxpayers and school children hostage as their demands would raise bus fares and county taxes. Mr. Spano has urged the union and the company to stay at the bargaining table for as long as it takes to get a settlement. The County Executive is involved and is monitoring the strike around the clock.
You may want to share the information below with your members, regarding previously purchased monthly Bee Line bus passes, as well as information on the UNITCKET from Metro North. County officials yesterday received assurances from Metro North that they, too, will adjust their tickets so that riders can be reimbursed for strike days.
We appreciate your patience and understand, full well, the inconvenience and hardship the strike has created for your homeowner association members, and the riding public at large. Mr. Spano believes that the union should get a fair contract, but not at the expense of the riders who can ill afford a fare increase.
Thank you, again, for writing. Please don't hesitate to contact us again if we can help you in any way.
Sincerely, Janis Viola
PASSPORT ADJUSTMENT POLICY - BEE-LINE BUSES
* Bee-Line bus riders who purchased monthly bus passes in March will be given credit for the missed days of service due to the strike.
* The credit will be given in two ways:
1. Bus riders with March bus passes will be able to use their March bus pass in April for the number of days the Bee-Line was on strike. For example, assuming the strike lasts six days, March bus passes will be honored for the first six days in April.
2. The price of April bus passes will be reduced by the number of days missed due to the strike in March. Using the same example of six strike days, six days out of 30 days in April is 20 percent. April bus passes (Regular PASSPORT), which normally costs $75, will be sold for $60, at a 20 percent reduction in price.
UNITICKETS - METRO NORTH
Bee-Line passengers who purchased a March UNITICKET for use on connecting Bee-Line services should contact Metro-North at 800-METRO-INFO (in NYC call 212-532-4900) or click on their website at www.mta.info for additional information.
Metro-North has told County officials that they will reimburse UNITCKET passengers for each WEEKDAY that the strike continues. The current UNITICKET price is $25.00 and there are 23 weekdays in March. Therefore, each day of the strike results in 1/23rd of $25.00, or $1.09 in refund per day.
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