Rail Strike Would Be Commuter Nightmare

Rail Strike Would Be Commuter Nightmare

Tuesday January 15, 2008 7:31 PM

By SARAH KARUSH

Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) - Commuters stranded from Virginia
to Massachusetts. Train service shut down at major
terminals in New York, Chicago and Boston. A flood of
extra cars on congested highways around Washington
and San Francisco.

Come Jan. 30, that nightmare could become a reality
unless a long-standing labor dispute between Amtrak
and nine unions is resolved.

There has never been a strike in Amtrak's 36-year
history, and it's still likely that one will be averted,
either through a last-minute deal or intervention by
Congress.

But if workers do walk out, the 71,000 people who take
Amtrak every day won't be the only ones who'll suffer.
Hundreds of thousands of people who ride commuter
trains will join them, since many such services depend
on Amtrak employees or infrastructure, particularly in
the Northeast.

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