A fight over public transportation in Pittsburgh

PITTSBURGH--Transit workers and residents here are waging a battle over the future of public transit with Port Authority leaders.

Multiple protests took place from March 19 to March 26, organized by the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 85 in cooperation with a grassroots organization of transit riders, Pittsburghers for Public Transit (PPT). The protests brought out students and community activists to join with militant trade unionists.

The greater Pittsburgh area was originally set to lose a third of its transit service due to a $47 million budget shortfall when then-Gov. Ed Rendell granted the Port Authority emergency funding to avert the cuts last November.

However, instead of allowing transit to continue at full levels for the rest of the year, County Commissioner Dan Onorato insisted on enacting a 15 percent service cut by the end of March in anticipation of another funding deficit. This is on top on years of increased fares and other smaller cuts that have already reduced service significantly.

Cutting service actually costs money, since making administrative changes, retraining drivers for new routes, shutting garages, and paying severance and unemployment benefits are all expensive procedures. Every time the Port Authority reduces services, it also decreases public funding for transit, which is based on ridership.

The only funding solution on the table right now in the state legislature is a proposal for "private-public partnerships" that would lease out transit services to private companies. The Port Authority has already agreed to privatize two of its major commuter routes, a move that would mean higher costs for riders and lower wages for workers.

The Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) has had a target on its back for years. Politicians and public opinion often blame workers for the perpetual mass transportation funding crises instead of the lack of stable or adequate public funding.

Bus drivers making $16.50 an hour with decent benefits are not the problem, however. The problem is that 70 percent of Pennsylvania corporations pay no taxes, and we spend our money subsidizing them instead of supporting public services.

ATU Local 85 is the first union to face an attack like this in Pennsylvania, but already, teachers are facing cuts and other public unions will not be far behind. The Republicans have adopted a slower strategy here than in Wisconsin or Ohio, but their goal is to crush the public unions, just the same. And locally, they are receiving some vigorous help from Democrats like Onorato.

The issue is also an environmental one. The Federal Transportation Administration and Environmental Protection Agency's 2010 study of mass transit and climate change finds that public transit helps the environment by "providing a low emissions alternative to driving, facilitating compact land use and minimizing the carbon footprint of transit operations and construction."

The city's industrial past has left Pittsburgh with one of the worst air qualities in the country. Public transit produces 95 percent less carbon monoxide, more than 92 percent fewer volatile organic compounds and nearly half as much carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxides than a typical car for every passenger mile traveled.

Mass transit also minimizes oil consumption, saving 4.2 billion gallons of gasoline a year in the U.S. Buses that are full, according to the Pittsburgh Port Authority, are six times more fuel efficient than cars and, for every 10,000 commuters who switch from solo vehicles to public transit, 2.7 million gallons of fuel is saved.

ON MARCH 19, 600 people gathered in the Squirrel Hill neighborhood of Pittsburgh for a march and rally to stop transit cuts that took effect March 27. The march was short but characterized by anger about the devastating nature of the lost jobs and services.

But protesters were also inspired by recent fightbacks in other states around issues of labor and austerity. Demonstrators called for the resignation of Steve Bland, the CEO of the Port Authority. Other chants included, "What's disgusting? Union Busting!" and "Stop the cuts." People held signs that read, "We're Riding with the Union" and "Transit Fix? Tax the Rich." A tabloid newspaper, funded by the ATU and written by PPT members, was distributed at the rally explaining the benefits of public transit.

The rally was so much larger than was originally anticipated that it took several minutes to get everyone off of the road and onto the church lawn where the demonstration was held. Despite the warnings of the police and some speakers, people never moved off the sidewalk--there wasn't enough room.

The crowd remained so energetic and loud that it was difficult to hear the speakers, which included members of Pittsburgh United, the Black Political Empowerment Project, Pittsburgh Interfaith Impact Network, Service Employees International Union, United Food and Commercial Workers, and many others. Support from bystanders was strong, with many cars--and all the busses--that passed the rally honking and drivers sometimes raising fists in support.

The rally was the largest held in Pittsburgh to protest transit cuts, but there have been many other protests.

Overnight on March 24, a small group held a 24-hour vigil, culminating in a larger rally the next morning that drew as many as 200 people. At the rally, a group of people briefly took the street stopping traffic. A bus "broke down" temporarily, also stopping traffic.

On March 26, another inspiring rally took place outside the meeting between union leaders and city officials. Onorato and Bland had offered a last-minute deal to ATU Local 85 leaders to stop the cuts and layoffs if they could cut $20 million. The union offered to cut pensions and cancel a regular wage increase, effectively taking a large wage cut, saving some $19 million. This would mean $7,500 out of the average worker's pocket.

At the rally, around 200 union members and their supporters were energetic. Similar to the past protests, most cars and all buses honked in solidarity. While speaking to the crowd just before the meeting, ATU President Pat McMahon was in tears--many union members were set to lose their jobs in just hours. But at the end of the rally, he returned with the news that the Port Authority had agreed to a one-week stay for further negotiations.

But in what can only have been a twisted attempt to torment the workers, the Port Authority went through with the layoffs the next day any way, claiming they had never made the agreement to postpone them. Bland and Onorato have been arguing in bad faith and have demanded for millions more in concessions from the union, during the following week. The idea is to cut service while busting the union.

THE CUTS and layoffs went through on Sunday, March 27, making Monday the first day of reduced service. Riders have already faced longer waits in just the first week of the cuts. Many reported having to walk further to find other routes or waiting for a second or third bus because the first one was full. Local news reported many people were late for work the first week after the cuts.

The cuts have slashed service to whole communities in outlying areas, especially in underprivileged neighborhoods such as those in the Mon Valley.

For many residents of these neighborhoods, losing their busses means losing their jobs--not to mention their access to grocery stores and medical treatment, since businesses and hospitals have been closing their doors in less "profitable" locations. Other underprivileged areas closer to the city center, such as the historic African American neighborhood of the Hill District, also have had dramatic service cuts.

But as the recent protests show, the fight is not over, and people are continuing to organize to reverse these decisions.