Tucson City Manager Credited with Helping End Bus Strike

*Updated Sept. 17, 1 p.m.

Few details were available Thursday on the deal that ended Tucson's 42-day-long municipal bus strike.

Buses resumed normal runs on all 43 Sun Tran routes Thursday morning, management officials said. That came after Teamsters Union members voted to ratify the contract reached early Thursday.

Teamsters Union spokesman Andy Marshall said Thursday that a push by Tucson City Manager Mike Ortega to clean up mold in the bus maintenance building was key to reaching settlement.

"It was a huge component, and the fact that Mr. Ortega gave that commitment to start that even before the ratification of the new agreement gave us a comfort level to move forward in partnership with the city that we never had before," Marshall said.

Both sides said wage issues were resolved within the current Sun Tran budget that the city approved in May. Under the contract, no money will be moved from other city departments to the Sun Tran budget. Money saved on fuel costs and bus maintenance during the strike was also applied to the agreement.

Bus passengers, including members of the Bus Riders Union, were jubilant that the strike was over. The riders union called a celebration for Thursday morning, at which it was expected to demand a change in bus system management.

" ... the Bus Riders Union will demand the firing of PTM, a seat at the table in determining the new bus management entity and the creation of a dedicated funding source for transit," a Bus Riders Union statement said.

PTM is Professional Transit Management, the private company that operates Sun Tran for the city, which owns and subsidizes the system. PTM negotiated with Teamsters Union Local 104 on the contract, consistently saying it could not pay for the wage and benefits package sought by the union.

City Councilwoman Regina Romero, a Democrat up for re-election this fall, said in a statement Wednesday that she wants the City Council to consider "heightened oversight of Sun Tran management." During the strike, Romero said the city should consider ending its contract with PTM.

The strike took its toll, with many passengers telling the news media they lost jobs, missed opportunities to take new jobs or were late for work, school and doctors' appointments during the six weeks of the strike as the bus system operated on a strictly limited schedule.

Cassandra Robinson, 23, said she lost her waitressing job at an IHOP restaurant because she could not get to work.

" ... there's been a lot of people without jobs now because of it, and maybe we can get back on our feet again," Robinson said.

Bus rider Annette Bell said the strike put a strain on her family life, including her inability to visit her elderly mother and not being able to get her granddaughter to school.

"I haven't seen my mom in 42 days," said Bell, who normally would take the bus to see her 85-year-old mother. "That's way too long."

Sun Tran's website announced that people holding 30-day bus passes or SunGo cards will get 42 free days added to their passes. It implored, "Please be patient, as the passes could take a few weeks to load."

The original contract proposed by the Teamsters Union would have increased all workers' pay by 50 cents an hour or more each of three years, plus added more to company-paid retirement funds and an 11th holiday each year. It also sought solutions to mold problems on buses and at the northwest bus service center and safety measures for drivers.

Management's proposal at the time of the strike was for 50-cent an hour raises for entry-level workers only, small increases in pension benefits and the 11th holiday.

Management officials said before and during the strike that they had a total of $2.7 million in the budget to add to the workers' compensation packages. That all was city subsidy, part of the nearly $30 million from taxpayers used to run the bus system, in addition to fares and money from the Regional Transit Authority and the federal government.

City Council members said two weeks ago that the city would not adjust its budget to provide more money for the workers. Then, one week ago, the council voted to allow management to use money it was saving from not operating the bus system at its fullest.