Order May Avert Transit Strike During DNC
A disruptive transit strike during next month’s Democratic National Convention may have been averted Thursday by a judge who took the first step toward blocking a walkout.
Superior Court Judge Dzintra Janavs granted a temporary restraining order that bars a walkout pending arguments July 25 on the preliminary injunction request. The cooling off period is then expected to be extended to Sept. 3.
Gov. Gray Davis asked state Atty. Gen. Bill Lockyer to seek the 60-day injunction to prevent three unions from striking the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.
“The governor is obviously pleased that the courts have responded to the . . . request for a cooling off period,” Davis spokesman Byron Tucker said.
A three-member board appointed by Davis to look into negotiations makes “clear that a strike or lockout will significantly disrupt public transportation services” and disproportionately affect the poor, the governor wrote to Lockyer.
A strike would cost the MTA $1 million a day and the downtown business district would lose $1.5 million a day, according to estimates.
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