Homeless in Arizona

Like most government agencies they are crooks and are refusing to give refunds on bus passes they sold which could not be used during the strike.

I am planning on suing Valley Metro and the cities of Tempe, Mesa, Chandler, Gilbert and some of Scottsdale and Phoenix to get back the money for which I paid for a bus pass but could not use it.

A full fare 31 day Valley Metro bus pass costs $64.

Since I could not use the bus pass for 4 of the 31 days I lost 4/31 of the value of the bus pass. In decimal that is about 13% of the value of the bus pass, which is about $8.26.

Valley Metro Bus Strike Lawsuit

Here is the bus pass I purchased, but which I could not use on August 1 thru 4 in the cities of Chandler, Tempe, Mesa and Gilbert which had all of their bus service stopped by the bus strike.

Some of the bus service was stopped in Phoenix and Scottsdale too. But other bus unions also provide bus service in Phoenix and Scottsdale so bus service did not come to a complete halt in Phoenix and Scottsdale like it did in the other cities.

Also the light rail service, which is run by another union continued to provide service. I did ride once on the light rail during the strike, when I went to the First Fridays event in downtown Phoenix.

Here are photos of both sides of my bus pass, which I could not use during Aug 1 thru 4. The bus pass number seems to be # L31-0013125. I probably bought it at the APS office in Chandler.

Valley Metro: CEO approved lack of minimum service

Use this article when I sue Valley Metro for a refund on my bus pass

Valley Metro: CEO approved lack of minimum service

By Dianna M. Náñez The Republic | azcentral.com

Sat Aug 3, 2013 8:51 PM

Valley Metro is saying CEO Steve Banta approved the decision not to require that the bus company provide residents minimum southeast Valley service at all times, including in the event of a strike, a contract provision that The Arizona Republic has learned is currently mandated under Phoenix bus-service contracts.

As of late Saturday, the three-day-old bus strike was ongoing and negotiators for bus company First Transit and for the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1433, which represents about 400 drivers, remained at the bargaining table, aiming to broker a compromise on a new contract and get buses rolling again.

Banta previously told the Republic that he was not on the contract procurement team and that he did not know why the team decided not to include a minimum-bus-service provision.

On Saturday, following a Republic story about the lacking requirement, that has left tens of thousands of residents without bus service, Valley Metro spokeswoman Hillary Foose said, in an e-mailed statement to the Republic, that Banta approved the decision.

“What he (Banta) said…is that, while he was not part of the procurement team, Steve did approve the decision,” Foose wrote. Banta did not return a request for further comment or reaction to the company statement.

That provision may have been the key to helping prevent the ongoing strike that has shut down all bus service in the southeast Valley, Tempe Councilman Kolby Granville told the Republic on Saturday.

The 40 routes not operating account for nearly half of the total Phoenix-area bus routes.

Valley residents, who endured the Phoenix and Tempe bus strike last year - which because of the minimum-service requirement maintained some bus service - waited at bus stops this week wondering why they were left without the safety net this time.

Granville said that he is among the council members who were “surprised” to find out in the days leading up to the strike that the contract approved in January for a new company to run southeast Valley bus services lacked the requirement.

The Tempe City Council and the Valley Regional Public Transportation Authority board of directors, which includes appointed representatives from Phoenix-area cities, approved the contract with First Transit. Granville and Tempe Councilman Joel Navarro said that it was a glaring oversight not to inform Tempe council members, prior to that approval, of the decision not to include the requirement.

Navarro told the Republic Friday that he has called for an internal review into why the decision was made and if the city can still make changes to the contract to include the requirement.

Tempe City Councilwoman Shana Ellis, who is Tempe’s representative on the Valley Metro board, did not return repeated requests for comment.

The Republic asked Valley Metro for names of the individuals who served on the procurement board.

“As for the names of the evaluation panel, this information is privileged,” Foose said in an e-mailed statement. “I can tell you that the panel was comprised of representatives from Valley Metro, Tempe, Mesa and Scottsdale. We also had an outside transit perspective from Denver.”

The provision, Granville said, was in Veolia’s bus contract, which operated Tempe service before it was unified with other southeast Valley cities under the First Transit contract, which took effect July 1.

Marie Chapple, a Phoenix Public Transit spokeswoman, told Republic Saturday, that if a strike was to happen against Phoenix bus companies, residents could count on some service because the city requires the safety net in its contracts with First Transit and Veolia.

“Just talking with passengers, yes, it did help (during last year’s strike,” Chapple said. “People were still able to try and find a way (to get to their destination),” she said. “We wanted that in there (because) the most important thing is to serve the people the people.”

The contract requirement isn’t just vital because it reassures Valley residents, desperate to get to work and appointments, that a regardless of a strike, and as long as they are willing to put up with longer waits, the bus company must keep some buses rolling, Granville said.

The minimum-service requirement also is tied to a hefty fine if service is not provided, he said.

Granville said the fines for not providing minimum service and the cost of flying in drivers from other properties to provide minimum service can serve as a deterrent to allowing contract negotiations to deteriorate to the point of a strike and give a bus company a significant monetary incentive to ending a strike.

“When people run the numbers, when they see how much money a strike is going to cost,” he said, “If it’s (the fine) is high enough, it would make everyone think long and hard before dealing with that punishment.”

Banta has said that there are drawbacks to requiring minimum service, including safety concerns tied to using outside drivers who are unfamiliar with the community’s bus routes.

“It’s unsafe to expect outside operators to safely use new equipment and operate routes/on roadways without training or experience,” Foose wrote.

Granville refuted that concern, saying, “I certainly wouldn’t want an untrained bus driver but if they are certified to drive a bus in Denver, they can certainly drive a bus in Phoenix.”

Chapple said that there were no safety issues tied to outside drivers operating buses during last year’s strike.

Banta also has said that although Phoenix and Tempe required Veolia to provide minimum service, which was to equate to the amount of bus service provided on Sundays, during last year’s strike Veolia was unable to meet that level.

Granville and Navarro agreed that some service is better than no service.

“I think it’s a mistake that should not be repeated in the future,” Granville said of the oversight, adding that residents who depends on public transportation and the cities that earns revenue from transit services are paying the price.

Refunds for people with bus passes effected by the bus strike

My request for damages over the bus strike sent to Valley Metro

I also made a request for damages in this email.

Refunds from Phoenix Tempe, Mesa, Scottsdale, Chandler for bus strike????

Source

Southeast Valley bus strike has commuters scrambling

By Chris Cole, Haley Madden and Brennan Smith The Republic | azcentral.com

Thu Aug 1, 2013 8:51 AM

A bus strike hit tens of thousands of southeast Valley commuters hard Thursday morning as they scrambled to find other modes of transportation to work, appointments or health care.

At 6 a.m., the Tempe Transportation Center, a large bus hub, the whir of engines was replaced by silence. Bus benches were empty as Metro light-rail riders filed on and off their trains, which are not affected by the strike.

At 7:30, normally prime commuting time, the Chandler Park and Ride at Germann Road and Hamilton Street, the Superstition Springs Park and Ride at U.S. 60 and Power Road in Mesa, the Gilbert Park and Ride at Oak Street and Page Avenue, and the Sycamore Street Park and Ride at 1806 West Main St. in Mesa, all were empty. That was a recurring theme at bus stops across the southeast Valley.

A few riders, however, unaware that the strike is on, went to stops waiting for a bus that wasn’t coming.

Maria Garcia, 31, was waiting at Thompson Peak Parkway and Raintree Drive in Scottsdale for Route 81 to commute to Phoenix when a reporter informed her that the route was among those affected by the strike.

“I don’t know what I’m going to do,” Garcia said. “This is going to affect and disappoint a lot of people. I can’t believe they’re doing this again.

“How do they expect us to get to work?”

Others began checking the internet on cellphones at bus stops as word spread that the strike is on.

“I didn’t know they were on strike and now I don’t know how I am going to get to work,” said Cory Painter of Phoenix. “I would want to tell them (the union drivers) that other people have to get to work, too. It’s unfair that they’ve done this twice now.”

Painter said he has been taking the bus to work because his car is broken and he does not have the means to get it repaired.

Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1433, which represents about 400 southeast Valley bus drivers, went on strike at midnight after failing to reach agreement on a new contract with First Transit, which operates buses in the southeast Valley for Valley Metro Regional Public Transportation Authority.

Late Wednesday, First Transit said it sent union officials a last-minute offer to address a sticking point in hopes of averting the strike. A union official said he was meeting with a federal mediator to discuss returning to the negotiating table.

Meanwhile, operations have ceased on 40 of Valley Metro’s 101 Phoenix-area bus lines serving Chandler, Mesa, Gilbert and Tempe, as well as parts of Scottsdale and Ahwatukee. Express routes to downtown Phoenix and Scottsdale Airpark also shut down.

Transit officials said the 40 routes average 57,000 weekday boardings. Phoenix transit officials said that the strike affects nine local routes and nine express routes and advised residents to visit the city’s transit website for a list of alternative routes.

Express bus lines to downtown Phoenix and the Scottsdale Airpark are considered major Valley transit arteries for workers who commute from the southeast Valley.

Valley Metro advised those who depend on buses to get to work, appointments and health care to look for alternative transportation and to visit the company’s website to search for carpool options. They said Metro light rail may have increased train service if demand warrants.

This is the second transit work stoppage in the Valley in 18 months. In March 2012, one of two transit companies serving the Valley at the time went on a limited six-day strike, providing only skeleton service in Phoenix and Tempe.

Tempe resident Devon Blake said he rides the bus almost every day and that he is “embarrassed” by the strike.

“I really don’t like striking. Nobody can get to work and nobody can get where they have to go,” Blake said.

Blake said he was planning on heading to the picket line at the center manned by several striking drivers to “try to talk some sense” into them.

“I want to talk to them and see what we can work out and if we can have service by tomorrow,” Blake said. “They said a week, two, to three weeks, or it could be a month, I don’t know.”

“I hope the boss understands,” said Mesa resident Tariq Rogers, who takes the bus to work at Scottsdale Road and Shea Boulevard. “This is not a good time for that to happen right now. I’m trying to call people, but none of my people are answering their phones. They’re all asleep.

“I think that these guys need to work this stuff out, man. Whatever it is, they need to work this out because this is ridiculous. They don’t realize the people they’re hurting out here that don’t have other ways to work or might work far away and can’t get a ride to work. Now we’re stuck, now we have to go on strike. We could lose our jobs because you knuckleheads are fighting over petty stuff. It doesn’t make any sense.”

Mesa resident Emmanuel Santillan said he rides the bus from his home in Mesa to work in Tempe.

“These buses were going to be a lot of help to get to work and back, now I’m just going to have to resort to other means, most likely a bike to get there,” Santillan said.

He called the strike a threat to his livelihood.

In Scottsdale, there was confusion over which routes are running and which are not running, given that some lines still in operation share stops with those that have ceased.

Those not running in Scottsdale are Routes 72 and 81, and Express Routes 511 and 514.

Those still running in Scottsdale are Routes 17, 29, 41, 50, 76, 106, 154 and 170.

Michael Brown, who had just gotten off his overnight shift at Jack in the Box at Thunderbird Road and Scottsdale Road, said he would have to call a cab to get home. He plans to arrange for a carpool during the duration of the strike.

“I depend a lot on the bus transportation,” Brown said. “I hope they can come to an understanding soon.”

Ernest Miller, 46, heard about the bus strike this morning but decided to come to the bus stop anyway to see if anything had changed.

“I’m supposed to be at work right now,” Miller said. “I might just go back home.”

Miller, who was standing at the bus stop on Scottsdale Road north of Shea Boulevard at 6:20 a.m., said he understands the bus drivers’ reason for striking, but isn’t sure how he’s going to get to work if the strike continues.

Joel Santeramo, 38, said he’s only been taking the bus this week because his car broke down on Friday. The strike is only a temporary inconvenience to him.

“I’m going to be an hour late to work at least and it’s going to cost me $20 for a cab ride,” Santeramo said.

He was sitting at the bus stop on Scottsdale Road north of Shea Boulevard and works only four miles away.

“They’re using (the heat) to their advantage,” Santeramo said. “They timed it right. ... It was a smart move.”

The central issue in the dispute does not involve wages, union officials say. Rather, it involves “management rights” with First Transit’s operating contract with the Valley Metro RPTA. The union fears that Valley Metro could order First Transit to violate the union’s labor agreement by unilaterally reducing driver wages or cutting work hours.

First Transit spokesman Nick Promponas told the Republic late Wednesday that the company has sent changes tied to the management-rights provision in the hopes of averting a strike. First Transit wanted drivers to consider not walking so that the sides may return to the table this morning.

“Our goal is to not disrupt the community, especially those folks who rely on the service,” Promponas said. [What a lie!!! This is the main purpose of a strike. Unions use strikes to disrupt their employers bossiness, hoping to force them bend to their demands.]

First Transit says that drivers were welcome and have the right to show up for work, although under the union agreement, they are not allowed to drive a bus. It is not known if any drivers who might cross the picket line would be assigned other duties during the strike.

Jen Biddinger, a bus company spokeswoman, confirmed that the company has no backup transit plans for Valley residents, adding that “passengers will need to consider other travel arrangements.”

Lead union negotiator Michael Cornelius said that “the bottom line is we want it to end quickly.”

“We want to be there for the passengers,” Cornelius said. “Unfortunately, there’s a huge foreign multinational company standing in the way.”

Biddinger apologized to commuters.

“First and foremost, we are disappointed in the decision by the union and regret that we are unable to reach an agreement,” she said, adding that First Transit laments “the uncertainty this is causing passengers.”

Source

Offer rejected; bus workers to vote on strike proposal

By Brennan Smith The Republic | azcentral.com Fri Jul 26, 2013 6:31 PM

Southeast Valley transit-union leaders rejected a final offer from the bus company Friday and will suggest a strike after negotiations on a new operating contract unraveled during the afternoon, setting the stage for an indefinite halt in public transportation on Aug. 1.

Michael Cornelius, lead union negotiator for Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1433, said that First Transit, which operates buses in the southeast Valley for the Valley Metro Regional Public Transportation Authority, presented the union with a “last, best and final” offer Friday afternoon.

Cornelius said union leadership “will not endorse” the proposed deal and will set up a vote next week with union members and recommend a strike.

“We will take it to our membership for their vote, but we will not endorse as it strips years of history and worsens current working conditions,” Cornelius told The Republic via text message.

Friday was the final scheduled negotiation as the clock ticks down on a 30-day extension that ends at 11:59 p.m. Wednesday. If the extension expires without a new agreement, the union could strike, stopping service on 40 routes in Tempe, Mesa, Chandler and Gilbert, as well as some routes in Scottsdale and Ahwatukee Foothills, and express service from those southeast Valley communities to downtown Phoenix and Scottsdale.

Negotiations resumed Friday with both a federal mediator and former Arizona Supreme Court Chief Justice Ruth McGregor sitting in as an independent observer to move talks along and cool tempers at an increasingly contentious bargaining table.

Cornelius said First Transit officials arrived to negotiations late Friday and sent an initial proposal that would give RPTA greater rights to determine termination of union members rather than the operating company, something Cornelius said “we will not accept under any circumstances.”

Repeated calls were made to First Transit officials, but they could not be reached for comment by Friday evening.

McGregor had been asked by Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton and the Phoenix City Council to assume a similar role as a disinterested third party during a six-day strike in March 2012. She worked with the union and Veolia Transportation Services, which then was the bus operator. McGregor was credited with helping end the strike.

Cornelius said McGregor was “great,” but ultimately union leaders rejected the final deal from First Transit.

On Monday, Cornelius said several bus drivers were complaining that they had not been paid at all during July and that the union was considering filing a civil suit against First Transit in response. The union represents about 400 southeast Valley drivers.

However, First Transit spokesman Maurice Harris said the company had paid all of its employees on July 5 and July 19, satisfying a state law that requires payment at least two times per month, no more than 16 days apart.

Employees who attended a voluntary training program prior to First Transit taking over operations received an additional paycheck on July 5, Harris said.

First Transit, part of United Kingdom-based FirstGroup, took over southeast Valley operation from Veolia for Valley Metro on July 1.

These government idiots are again part of the PROBLEM!!!!

The current contract that Valley Metro has with First Transit says that if there is a strike, that non-striking bus drivers can't cross the picket lines and drive buses!!!! They have to be put to work twiddling their thumbs or doing anything but driving a bus.

From a prior article I posted that clause says:

"drivers were welcome and have the right to show up for work, although under the union agreement, they are not allowed to drive a bus"

And its probably elected officials like Mesa City Councilman Scott Somers who sold out to the unions and allowed the clause in the contract.

Without that clause there would be at least a few buses rolling the the east valley making the strike less severe!!!

Source

Public officials decry SE Valley bus strike

By Gary Nelson The Arizona Republic | azcentral.com Thu Aug 1, 2013 11:18 AM

Public officials are angry that tens of thousands of their constituents are scrambling for rides in triple-digit heat because of a bus strike.

“This was a nuclear option that wasn’t necessary,” Mesa City Councilman Scott Somers said.

Somers is chairman of the Valley Metro Regional Public Transportation Authority, which oversees bus operations in the Valley. First Transit operates buses in the southeast Valley for Valley Metro. [he was almost certainly one of the people that approved the contract that says non-striking bus drivers are not allowed to drive buses]

The strike began at midnight Wednesday, affecting mostly the southeast Valley but also some routes in Phoenix and Scottsdale. Some of the approximately 57,000 people who board the buses every day got up Thursday morning unaware of the strike, and found themselves stranded.

“I feel for the thousands of people who rely on bus service in the Southeast Valley on a daily basis,” Mesa Mayor Scott Smith said. [although he was almost certainly one of the people that approved the contract that says non-striking bus drivers are not allowed to drive buses]

Smith said sometimes the reality of a strike can jar both sides into seeking a quick settlement, but there’s no guarantee in this case.

“Who knows what it will take?” Smith said. “We’re hoping that they quickly resolve their differences and we can get back to business as usual.”

Although elected city officials are deeply involved in establishing overall transportation policy in the region, Smith and Somers said they have little power to intervene. [That is misleading. Our elected officials that approved the contract, could have, and should have put a clause in the contract that forbid strikes. And they really screwed up by approving the current contract that said non-striking drivers are not allowed to drive buses]

The buses are publicly owned, but the labor dispute involves two private entities: Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1433, representing the drivers, and their employer, First Transit. First Transit is a part of FirstGroup, based in the United Kingdom.

“It’s a private-sector spat that’s influencing public services,” Somers said. “We gain a lot of benefit out of public-private partnerships and contracting, but there are downsides. And this is one of them.” [Again Somers is trying to blame the private sector for a very poorly written contract between the city of Mesa and First Transit. Somers, it's YOUR fault, don't blame the private sector]

Somers said RPTA officials had hoped the union would avoid calling a full-blown strike after rejecting the company’s offer this week, perhaps limiting bus service but not shutting it down altogether.

“Unfortunately, calmer heads did not prevail,” he said. “And what’s bothering me is it is the working class of folks who are in those hourly jobs and really depend on public transportation are the ones that get hurt.”

Somers said he had received an e-mail from a man who lives in Mesa and takes the bus to his job in Ahwatukee.

“This strike is going to really affect his ability to go to work and make a living,” Somers said.

Chandler City Councilman Jack Sellers, who was recently named vice chair of the Maricopa Association of Governments transportation policy committee, said the strike could hurt the Valley’s efforts to develop better transit options. [And Chandler City Councilman Jack Sellers is probably part of the problem too. Chandler approved the same contract with First Transit that Mesa did]

“I feel like one of the things that we really need to improve here in the Valley is our transit offerings as well as expanding transit ridership,” Sellers said, “and these kind of things create a terrible setback because the thing that causes people to rely on transit is the idea that it’s going to be there when they need it.” [Sounds like Sellers is doing some heavy shoveling of the BS here!!!!]

“It is certainly frustrating,” Sellers said about the strike. “I would say it’s going to have a pretty serious impact, if it goes on, particularly.”

Other mayors called for a quick end to the strike.

Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton told The Republic he does not know yet how many city employees were impacted by the strike, but believes many heading to downtown Phoenix were.

“When our public transit system has a work stoppage, it hurts the entire region and particularly downtown Phoenix, because many of the people utilizing public transit, especially the express routes, are coming downtown,” he said.

Stanton spent Wednesday night talking to both sides of the dispute hoping to encourage a solution. [Mayor Stanton seems to be sleeping with the Phoenix Police and Phoenix Fire Department unions and he will almost certainly sell out to the bus driver unions]

“I’m frustrated that it got to this point of a work stoppage and I expect both sides to roll up their sleeves and get right back to the table today as soon as possible and announce that this strike is over,” he said. “That’s my demand and expectation.”

Scottsdale Mayor Jim Lane said he is “always concerned about” a bus strike. [Then why did you approve a contract that allows them to strike????]

“This situation comes up with some regularity at contract time,” he said. “There is not a great deal that can be done in the way of replacement that I’m aware of. [That is rubbish. You could have written a contract with a no strike clause in it!!!]

“It means we’re at the mercy of MAG’s metro lines. I hope they would be able to resolve it in some reasonable amount of time. In the meantime, alternatives are going to be the product of their own ingenuity.”

Chandler Mayor Jay Tibshraeny termed the strike “an unfortunate situation and a very extreme inconvenience for many of our residents that depend on that service.”

“I just think it’s ill-timed and not productive,” Tibshraeny said. [Thanks for all the hot air and no action. That and a $1 will buy you a cup of coffee]

Chandler is working to get the word of the strike out to residents, he said.

“Any influence we can have we will certainly exert on the negotiations,” Tibshraeny said. “Obviously we’re encouraging them but at the end of the day, we’re not the ones signing the contract.”Tempe Mayor Mark Mitchell, quoted in a Valley Metro press release, said, “It is imperative that ATU and First Transit work together in good faith to achieve a fair and equitable solution to this labor dispute for the good of our transit passengers.” [And now we have Tempe Mayor Mark Mitchell shoveling the BS]

He urged the company and union to “quickly resolve this issue to avoid impacting thousands of passengers and their essential travel.”

Eugene Scott and Michelle Mitchell contributed to this report.

Routes threatened by bus drivers' strike

Routes threatened by bus drivers' strike

The Republic | azcentral.com Thu Aug 1, 2013 6:42 AM

These 40 Valley Metro are expected to be shut down after drivers went on strike at midnight:

30 University in Phoenix, Tempe and Mesa: Serves South Mountain Community College, 32nd St./Broadway Road, 52nd St./University Drive, Mill Ave./University Drive, University Drive/Price Road, Main St./Sycamore, University Drive/Country Club Drive, University Drive/Gilbert Road, University Drive/Greenfield Road, University Drive/Power Road and University Drive/Sossamon Road.

40 Apache/Main Street in Tempe and Mesa: Serves Apache Blvd./Price Road, Main St./Sycamore/ Country Club Drive/Main St., Main St./Mesa Drive, Main St./Gilbert Road, Main St./Greenfield road, Main St./Power Road and Superstition Springs Center.

45 Broadway in Phoenix, Tempe and Mesa: Serves 19th Ave./Southern Ave., Broadway Road/19th Ave., Central Ave./Broadway Road, Broadway Road/24th St., 48th St./Broadway Road, Hardy Drive/Broadway Road, Broadway Road/Rural Road, Broadway Road/Price Road, Main St/Sycamore, Mesa Drive/Broadway Road, Gilbert Road/Broadway Road, Broadway Road/Greenfield Road, Banner Baywood Medical Center, Superstition Springs Center.

48 48th Street/Rio Salado in Phoenix and Tempe: Serves Arizona Mills Mall, Priest Drive/Baseline Road, 48th Street/Broadway Road, 52nd St./University Drive, Tempe Center for the Arts, Tempe Transportation Center.

56 Priest Drive in Phoenix and Tempe and Guadalupe: Serves 48th St./Chandler Blvd., 48th St./Warner Road, Priest Drive/Baseline Road, Arizona Mills Mall, Priest Drive/Southern Ave., Priest Drive/University Drive, Priest Drive/Washington St.

61 Southern Ave. in Phoenix, Tempe and Mesa: Serves 43rd Ave./Southern Ave., 19th Ave./Southern Ave., Central Ave./Southern Ave., Southern Ave./24th St., Southern Ave./48th St., Southern Ave./Rural Road, Southern Ave./Price Road, Southern Ave./Dobson Road, Southern Ave./Country Club Drive, Southern Ave./Gilbert Road, Southern Ave./Greenfield Road and Superstition Springs Center.

62 Hardy/Guadalupe in Tempe: Serves Guadalupe Road/Price Road, Kyrene Road/Guadalupe Road, Hardy Drive/Baseline Road, Hardy Drive and University Drive, Tempe Transportation Center, Tempe Marketplace.

65 Mill/Kyrene in Tempe: Serves Hardy Drive/Warner Road, Kyrene Road/Guadalupe Road, Mill Ave./Baseline Road, Mill Ave./Broadway Road, Tempe Transportation Center.

66 Mill/Kyrene in Tempe., Chandler, Gila River Indian Community: Serves Lone Butte Casino, Kyrene Road/Warner Road, Kyrene Road/Guadalupe Road, Mill Ave./Baseline Road, Mill Ave./Baseline Road, Mill Ave./Broadway Road, Tempe Transportation Center.

72 Scottsdale/Rural in Phoenix, Scottsdale, Paradise Valley, Tempe and Chandler: Serves Chandler Fashion Center, Rural Road/Chandler Blvd., Rural Road/Ray Road, Elliot Road/Rural Road, Rural Road/Southern Ave., Tempe Transportation Center, Scottsdale Road/McDowell Road, Scottsdale Road/Lincoln Drive, Scottsdale Road/Shea Blvd., Scottsdale Road/Thunderbird Road, Scottsdale Road/Frank Lloyd Wright Blvd., Scottsdale Healthcare Drive.

77 Baseline Road in Phoenix, Tempe, Mesa: Serves Baseline Road/75th Ave., Baseline Road/51st Ave., 27th Ave./Baseline Road, Central Ave./Baseline Road, 24th Street/Baseline Road, South Mountain Community College, 48th St./Baseline Road, Arizona Mills mall, Priest Drive/Baseline Road, Rural Road/Baseline Road, Baseline Road/Price Road, Dobson Road/Baseline Road.

81 Hayden/McClintock in Scottsdale, Tempe and Chandler: Serves Chandler Fashion Center, McClintock Drive/Chandler Blvd., McClintock Drive/Warner Road, ASU Research Park, McClintock Drive/Guadalupe Road, McClintock Drive/Southern Ave., McClintock Drive/Apache Blvd., Tempe Marketplace, Hayden Road/McDowell Road, Hayden Road/Camelback Road, Hayden Road/McCormick Parkway, 90th Street/Shea Blvd., Raintree Drive/Northsight Blvd.

96 Dobson in Mesa and Chandler: Serves Basha Road/Fulton Ranch Blvd., Dobson Road/McQueen Road, Dobson Road/Pecos Road, Dobson Road/Chandler Blvd., Elliot Road/Dobson Road, Dobson Road/Baseline Road, Mesa Community College, Main St./Sycamore, Dobson Road/University Drive, Mesa Riverview.

104 Alma School in Mesa and Chandler: Serves Boston St./Washington St., Alma School Road/Chandler Blvd., Alma School Road/Elliot Road, Fiesta Mall, Alma School Road/Broadway Road, Main St./Sycamore, Alma School Road/University Drive, Mesa Riverview.

108 Elliot Road in Tempe ,Mesa, Chandler and Gilbert: Serves Priest Drive/Elliot Road, Elliot Road/Rural Road, ASU Research Park, Elliot Road/Dobson Road, Arizona Ave./Elliot Road, Guadalupe Road/Val Vista Drive, Guadalupe Road/Power Road, Sunland Village East, Super Springs Center.

112 Country Club/Arizona Ave. in Mesa, Chandler and Gilbert: Serves Hamilton St./Morelos St., Arizona Ave./Chandler Blvd., Arizona Ave./Ray Road, Arizona Ave./Elliot Road, Country Club Drive/Guadalupe Drive, West Mesa Park and Ride, Country Club Drive/Juanita Ave., Southern Ave./Country Club Drive, Country Club Drive/Main St., Center St./McKellips Road.

120 Mesa Drive in Mesa: Serves Lewis Court/Coury Ave., Mesa Drive/Broadway Road, Mesa Drive/University Drive, Center/8th Street.

128 Stapley in Mesa: Serves Inverness Ave./Stapley Drive, Stapley Drive/Southern Ave., Stapley Drive/Broadway Road, Stapley Drive/University Drive, Stapley Drive/McKellips Road.

136 Gilbert in Mesa, Chandler and Gilbert: Serves Gilbert Road/Germann Road, Gilbert Road/Chandler Blvd., Gilbert Road/Civic Center Drive, Elliot Road/Gilbert Road, Gilbert Park and Ride, Gilbert Road/Baseline Road, Gilbert Road/Broadway Road, University Drive/Gilbert Road, Gilbert Road/McDowell Park and Ride, Lindsay Road/Brown Road.

156 Chandler/Williams Field in Mesa, Chandler and Gilbert: Serves Chandler Blvd./54th St., Rural Road/Chandler Blvd., Chandler Blvd/Chandler Village Drive, Dobson Road/Chandler Blvd., Arizona Ave./Chandler Blvd., Gilbert Road/Chandler Blvd., Gilbert Mercy Hospital, Williams Field Road/Higley Road, ASU Polytechnic.

184 Power Road in Mesa and Gilbert: Serves ASU Polytechnic, Guadalupe Road/Power Road, Superstition Spring Center, Banner Baywood Medical Cente4r, University Drive/Power Road, Red Mountain Community College, Power Road Park and Ride.

BUZZ in Mesa: Serves downtown Mesa, the Mesa Post Office (First/Center streets), Country Club Drive/Brown Road, Alma School Road/University Drive, Brown Road/Mesa Drive, and the Mesa Multi-generational Center.

Express 511 Tempe/Scottsdale Airpark in Scottsdale, Tempe, Salt River Indian Community: Serves Tempe Transportation Center, Scottsdale Community College, 90th Street/Shea Blvd., Scottsdale Airpark.

Express 514 Scottsdale in Scottsdale, Phoenix, Paradise Valley, Fountain Hills, Salt River Indian Community: Serves La Montana Drive/Palisades Blvd., 92nd St./Shea Blvd., Scottsdale Community College, Scottsdale/Road/McDowell Road, Central Ave./Van Buren St., 17th Ave. Jefferson St.

Express 520 Tempe in Phoenix and Tempe: Serves Broadway Road/Price Road, McClintock Drive/Alameda Drive, Rural Road/Southern Ave., Southern Ave./Mill Ave., Central Ave./Van Buren St., 17th Ave./Jefferson St.

Express 521 Tempe in Phoenix and Tempe: Serves Baseline Road/Price Road, McClintock Drive/Baseline Road, Southshore Drive/Lakeshore Drive, Mill Ave./Baseline Road, Central Ave./Van Buren Street, 17th Ave./Jefferson St.

Express 522 Tempe in Phoenix and Tempe: Serves Elliot Road/Country Club Drive, Warner Road/Rural Road, 48th St./Elliot Road, Tempe Sports Complex, Priest Drive/Elliot Road, Central Ave./Van Buren St., 17th Ave./Jefferson St.

Express 531 Mesa/Gilbert in Phoenix, Tempe, Mesa and Gilbert: Serves Gilbert Park and Ride, Gilbert Road/Ash St., West Mesa Park and Ride, Central Ave./Van Buren St., 17th Ave./Jefferson St.

Express 533 Mesa in Phoenix and Mesa: Serves .Superstition Springs Park and Ride, Central Ave./Van Buren St., 17th Ave./Jefferson St.

Express 535 Red Mountain/Downtown in Phoenix and Mesa: Serves Power Road Park and Ride, Gilbert Road/McDowell Road Park and Ride, Central Ave./Van Buren St., 17th Ave./Jefferson St.

Express 541Chandler in Phoenix, Mesa and Chandler: Serves Arizona Ave./Ray Road, Alma School Road/Elliot Road, West Mesa Park and Ride, Central Ave., Van Buren St., 17th Ave./Jefferson St..

Express 542 in Phoenix and Chandler: Serves Chandler Park and Ride, Central Ave./Van Buren St., 17th Ave./Jefferson St.

FLASH Back in Tempe: Serves Rio Salado at ASU Lot 59, ASU campus.

FLASH: McAlister in Tempe: (not currently operating while Arizona State is in summer session) Serves Spence Ave./Rural Road, Rio Salado at ASU Lot 59.

Link Arizona Ave. in Mesa, Chandler and Gilbert: Serves Chandler Park and Ride, Arizona Ave./Chandler Blvd., Arizona Ave./Elliott Road, Southern Ave./Country Club Drive, Main St./Sycamore.

Link Main Street in Mesa: Serves Main St./Sycamore, Country Club Drive/Main St., Main St./Gilbert Road, Main St./Greenfield Road, Main St./Power Road, Superstition Springs Center.

Orbit Earth in Scottsdale and Tempe: Serves Tempe Transportation Center, College Ave./Curry Road, Scottsdale Road/Continental Drive, North Tempe Multi-Generational Center, Tempe Marketplace.

Orbit Jupiter in Tempe: Serves McClintock High School, Tempe Public Library, College/Southern Ave., Forest/Gammage, Tempe Transportation Center.

Orbit Mars in Tempe: Serves Southern Ave./Evergreen St., McClintock High School, Dorsey/Broadway Road, Tempe Transportation Center.

Orbit Mercury in Tempe: Serves Tempe Transportation Center, 8th St./McClintock Drive, Escalante Community Center.

Orbit Venus in Tempe: Serves Tempe Transportation Center, Broadway Road/Roosevelt St., Priest Drive/University Drive, 5th St./Farmer Ave.

Phoenix suggests options for riders during bus strike

Phoenix suggests options for riders during bus strike

The Republic | azcentral.com Wed Jul 31, 2013 9:15 PM

To help passengers understand which Valley Metro bus routes continue to operate, Phoenix has posted an overview map of affected routes, a list of those bus routes and suggestions for alternate routes and travel options in Phoenix at http://phoenix.gov/publictransit/index.html.

Phoenix continues to operate 45 Valley Metro bus routes within the city and to West Valley cities and Scottsdale.

Phoenix bus routes may be able to provide another way to a passenger’s destination via Phoenix transit centers: Ed Pastor Transit Center at Central Avenue and Broadway Road; Central Station Transit Center at Central Avenue and Van Buren Street; Paradise Valley Mall Transit Center on the north side of the mall; and Desert Ridge Marketplace at Loop 101 and Tatum Boulevard.

Passengers may be able to combine bus travel with a ride from family and friends or a taxi and use those passenger facilities as pick-up and drop off points.

Passengers in south and southeast Phoenix are most impacted because Baseline Road and Southern Avenue are serviced by the southeast Valley contract, where drivers are striking.

Phoenix-operated bus service will continue on north-south roads with some east-west service. Passengers may be able to reach their destination using another route.

Bus passengers are also urged to take caution as they wait for a bus in the summer heat. Phoenix urges them to drink plenty of water and carry portable shade, such as an umbrella, during the wait and when walking to and from bus stops.

More personal-cooling tips are available at http://phoenix.gov/publictransit/index.html under the Rider Information link.

Updated information on the progress of labor negotiations for southeast Valley bus service is available at http://www.valleymetro.org/ or 602-253-5000.

Southeast Valley buses back on streets after 4-day strike

Southeast Valley buses back on streets after 4-day strike

By Brennan Smith The Republic azcentral.com Mon Aug 5, 2013 8:17 AM

Public buses began rolling again across the southeast Valley on Monday morning, just in time for the first day of school in many districts.

While the bus strike that shut down service in the region for four days involved public-bus drivers and not school-bus drivers, thousands of students, especially in Tempe, rely on public buses.

“I was really worried that they weren’t going to start back up and not being able to get to school,” said Shania Davis, who lives in Phoenix, and was catching a bus at the Tempe Transportation Center to Compadre High School for opening day of her senior year.

“It’s a relief that you can get back and forth again. It’s a lot easier. You can’t really walk in this heat. I’m just happy the bus is back and running.”

Sue Taaffe, a Tempe transit employee, said that on average about 4,500 Tempe students have a free bus pass each year.

The strike, which ended with a contract agreement early Sunday afternoon between Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1433 and First Transit, which operates buses in the southeast Valley for Valley Metro Regional Public Transportation Authority, already had inconvenienced tens of thousands of riders who rely on service to get to work, appointments and health care.

The agreement, which came after a marathon negotiating session that lasted nearly 24 hours, will be put to a vote of the nearly 400 southeast Valley bus drivers represented by Local 1433 within a week, union officials said. Meanwhile, the union ordered drivers off the picket lines and back to work.

Service resumed in time for this morning’s commute in Tempe, Mesa, Gilbert, Chandler and parts of Scottsdale, Ahwatukee Foothills and south Phoenix, as well as all service from the southeast Valley communities to Phoenix and Scottsdale. In all, 40 of Valley Metro’s 101 Phoenix-area bus lines that average 57,000 weekday boardings shut down.

Phoenix resident Roy Hardwick, who works at Embassy Suites in Tempe, made a 40-minute walk to work during the service shutdown.

“I use the bus to go to work every day,” Hardwick said. “I basically had to walk to work while the strike was going on. I was kind of upset about it and they should have had emergency buses for people that work up and down Scottsdale Road.”

Hardwick said that he has friends who at Mayo Clinic and could not get to work without the buses.

“I don’t really know what happened, if they lost their jobs or not, but the strike affected people that had to go to work,” Hardwick said. “A lot of people can’t afford to take off work for a strike.

“I’m glad it’s over with. When you think about Mesa, Tempe, Scottsdale, Gilbert, all those, the east Valley has a lot of people. They have thousands and thousands of people who ride the bus. It’s hard to get a grip on that.” 2) put the following in government, tempe town toilet, tempe cesspool for the arts and Kolby Granville 2) put the following in government, tempe town toilet, tempe cesspool for the arts and Kolby Granville 2) put the following in government, tempe town toilet, tempe cesspool for the arts and Kolby Granville 2) put the following in government, tempe town toilet, tempe cesspool for the arts and Kolby Granville 2) put the following in government, tempe town toilet, tempe cesspool for the arts and Kolby Granville 2) put the following in government, tempe town toilet, tempe cesspool for the arts and Kolby Granville 2) put the following in government, tempe town toilet, tempe cesspool for the arts and Kolby Granville 2) put the following in government, tempe town toilet, tempe cesspool for the arts and Kolby Granville 2) put the following in government, tempe town toilet, tempe cesspool for the arts and Kolby Granville 2) put the following in government, tempe town toilet, tempe cesspool for the arts and Kolby Granville 2) put the following in government, tempe town toilet, tempe cesspool for the arts and Kolby Granville 2) put the following in government, tempe town toilet, tempe cesspool for the arts and Kolby Granville 2) put the following in government, tempe town toilet, tempe cesspool for the arts and Kolby Granville 2) put the following in government, tempe town toilet, tempe cesspool for the arts and Kolby Granville 2) put the following in government, tempe town toilet, tempe cesspool for the arts and Kolby Granville 2) put the following in government, tempe town toilet, tempe cesspool for the arts and Kolby Granville 2) put the following in government, tempe town toilet, tempe cesspool for the arts and Kolby Granville 2) put the following in government, tempe town toilet, tempe cesspool for the arts and Kolby Granville

Tempe mulls altering bus pact to ensure service during strike

Tempe mulls altering bus pact to ensure service during strike

By Dianna M. Náñez The Republic | azcentral.com Thu Aug 29, 2013 6:25 AM

Tempe has long been a leader in public transportation, dating to 1996 when the city’s voters became the first in the state to pass a sales-tax increase dedicated to boosting transit services.

But in recent years, as Tempe struggled with the lingering effects of an economic downturn, it made widespread cuts to its bus services.

The City Council has said the cuts seemed deep because Tempe had invested so extensively in public transportation.

Amid plummeting sales-tax collections, Tempe was left with no choice but to shrink its transit system, Tempe Councilwoman Shana Ellis said in 2010.

“We’re having to cut more transit services because we offered more to begin with,” she said at the time. “But we’re doing this as prudently as possible and with as much community input as possible.”

Ellis served on the city’s transit committee and has long served as Tempe’s voting representative on the Valley Metro Regional Public Transportation and Valley Metro light-rail boards.

Ellis fought to maintain her board positions last summer when Tempe Mayor Mark Mitchell argued that it would best serve residents if more mayors showed an interest in serving on the regional transit boards.

Ellis has not returned The Arizona Republic’s repeated requests for comment on Tempe bus services and the strike.

The chance to save millions of dollars spurred Tempe’s decision last year to cede control of its transit system. Unifying its services with other municipalities in the Southeast Valley was supposed to save as much as $12 million, Valley Metro officials have said.

It now appears that saving a buck also played a major part in the decision not to require the bus company that operates Southeast Valley bus services for Valley Metro Regional Public Transportation Authority to provide “contingent,” or minimum, bus service at all times, even during a strike.

That requirement remains in Phoenix’s bus contract for services outside of the Southeast Valley with Veolia Transportation Services and First Transit and it mandates fines for the bus companies under certain conditions if they are unable to provide passengers the scaled-back services. That provision in Phoenix’s contract requires 60 percent of normal operations, or the equivalent of a Sunday bus schedule.

When Phoenix and Tempe bus drivers went on strike for six days in March 2012, that provision worked as a safety net for desperate bus riders who were willing to withstand long waits during the scaled-back operations to secure a ride to work, Tempe Councilman Joel Navarro said.

Tempe City Councilman Kolby Granville told The Republic last week that he asked Valley Metro CEO Steve Banta why the provision was not included in the current Southeast Valley contract for unified services, which caused a total shutdown in service across the region during a four-day strike this month.

The operating contract between First Transit and Valley Metro for Southeast Valley bus services is separate from the recently negotiated labor contract between First Transit and the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1433.

Granville said Banta told him a minimum-service provision “would raise the cost of the contract.” Granville said he is advocating for amending the contract in three years when it is up for renewal to include minimum bus service. The requirement not only would serve residents, but could be a financial deterrent to a future strike if the bus company knows it would have to pay to fly in drivers and or pay fines for not meeting the contract requirement, he said.

“I don’t mind that it raises the cost of the contract,” Granville said. “If there’s a strike, it’s going to cost us (revenue).”

The provision is “motivation (for the bus company) to not allow there to be a strike,” he said.

Navarro, who said Banta met with him to address his concerns, has demanded an analysis of what it would cost to amend the contract with First Transit to require minimum bus service and fines if that service is not provided.

Depending on cost, Navarro would prefer to amend the contract as soon as possible to include a minimum-service requirement.