One strike and Philadelphia transit is out
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The eyes of the nation -- or at least the eyes of the nation that follow sports -- are on Philadelphia this weekend. And what they might wind up seeing is a lot of traffic and a lot of people walking.
The city’s bus, subway and trolley services could grind to a halt at midnight Friday if the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority cannot reach agreement with its largest union on a series of wage and benefit issues.
Transport Workers Union Local 234, which represents 4,700 operators and mechanics, has called for a strike beginning at 12:01 a.m., less than 18 hours before the first pitch of Game 3 of the World Series at Citizens Bank Park. The ballpark is served by a number of bus and subway lines that deliver tens of thousands of fans to the South Philadelphia stadium. A strike would likely paralyze traffic in the area. And things could be even worse on Sunday when the Philadelphia Eagles play the New York Giants at 1 p.m. at Lincoln Financial Field, which shares a parking lot with the baseball stadium. Game 4 of the World Series is scheduled for Sunday night.
Negotiations between the transit authority and the union broke off at 10 p.m. Thursday, but they are scheduled to resume late this afternoon.
-- Kevin Baxter