20 September 2006

ACTION bunks off

| johnboy
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Bad luck for those relying on public transport, the ACTION drivers have had enough of their management and thrown a wildcat strike.

Samuel Gordon Stewart is explaining the strike in interminable detail.

So bus users, how has the strike impact you?

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Hey Bubzie – where I went to school kids wouldn’t have shown up for a month riding that one!

Geez Bubzie,

You could have gotten excellent mileage outta that one.

That’s what I thought – so the airport shouldn’t be affected by the Action strike…

simto, there is a single bus service out here.. run by the airport, it runs twice an hour..
and costs like 6$ a trip, or 3.50 per trip if you work at brindabella.

I hope the government has the balls to have the full force of the law applied to the TWU and drivers. But no doubt some namby pamby settlement will be reached which protects the drivers interests with minimal if any gain for the commuter/taxpayer. (I speak from bitter experience here having had in a previous life dealings with the TWU and having been fucked over when things get too hot for the politicians and they inevitably go to water over taking a tough stand). I’m not bitter in hoping the TWU and drivers get the full workchoices consequences thrown at them. (not at all???)

I heard Zissler on the radio this afternoon, and his words weren’t exactly conciliatory, so I expect there’s still more to come.

I sympathise with the reasons for the strike, but if the drivers want public support for their fight, they shouldn’t inconvenience the very people who rely on them to get to either work or school. They could at least have given more notice.

The buses were on strike ? I really must live in my own little world – one where people drive cars.

The traffic around the airport area was worse this morning. Where Fairbairn meets Pialligo Ave, it was gridlocked both ways (those lights at Majura Road and the 2nd lot near the Duntroon playing fields caused that).

Well, that’s weird, since the busses don’t run to brindabella (or they didn’t, anyway – has that changed?)

i drove myself in my car to work at brindabella at 11am, where the car park actually seemed unusually empty.

I had to walk 7km to school..i win. I had to leave home at like 7:20, and got to school at about 8:45..

And yeah, i found out about the strike about 5mins after my mother took the car to work, damm.

And yeah, the bus not coming isnt a reasonable excuse for my school either..lol

It was frustrating for most at school (I drive :D)

Its caused a bit of chaos today with people not able to get to school (thus resulting in absences which cannot be explained….bus not coming isnt a reason according to BSSS)

So im sure most students at schools today have had a hard time….thank god i got my liscence.

bonfire – you’re going to love what I have to say…I am reliably informed that Mary Porter and Jacqui Burke (on occasion) use the bus either to go to work or when on ‘electorate duty’.

I look forward to the ceremonial dancing naked around a maypole!

I vaguely remember back in the 90’s there was a “strike” that involved not collecting fares (while continuing to offer the same services).

And whilst I’d doubt any MLA uses the bus (well, Foskey might for the cred, occasionally), they’ve probably got a PA or a family member who does. They don’t live in a completely isolated bubble, you know…

I saw this notice in Woden at lunchtime. I’ve no idea when it was posted. Buses were operating normally by lunch, however…

i hope each driver does get fined 20k.

there was absolutely no notice.

remids me of the last days of the cain/kirner gummint.

action drivers shoudl be ashamed of themselves.

perhaps not collecting fares may affect the gummint more than inconveniencing people like me who chooses to use public transport on ideological grounds.

if any current member of the assembly has used an action bus to get to ‘work’ then id dance naked around a maypole.

I would rather that they continued working but didn’t take any fares.

Luckily I read the paper this morning and managed not to skip over the rather small story saying there would be a strike and managed to arrange a lift.

It was unusual timing today; apparently starting at 6am and ending 8.30. One wonders if their middle fo the day strikes haven’t been causing enough inconvenience so they decided to step it up a notch.

Absent Diane12:18 pm 20 Sep 06

I had to walk 10 minutes to work and it nearly bloody killed me. Well not really. I did get mobbed by one person as I walked past a bus stop who wasn’t sure what was going on. That almost didn’t nearly kill me either.

I caught a cab to work with another commuter so we were able to split the fare. I called Canberra Cabs and got through to the voice activation system. It did not recognise my request (no surprises there) so I spoke to a call centre operator, I got to work 2 hrs late. I only sold my car to weeks ago, so I was pretty much stranded.

James — not everyone listens to the radio before going to work.

In any case, “notification” means an official notice from ACTION at bus stops and interchanges in the days prior to the event — not simply reporting the stopwork when it happens on radio news.

James-T-Kirk11:03 am 20 Sep 06

GuruJ,

There was notification. It was all over 106.3fm

Get cars people, or become recumbant cyclists.

I had to walk 70 minutes to work after waiting for half an hour.

Public transport is, or should be, an essential public service like hospitals or police. Any responsible workforce should not walk off the job during peak service without notification.

My current opinion of the TWU is unprintable.

James-T-Kirk9:58 am 20 Sep 06

Damn!

I dropped the kid at day care, dropped the missus at work, then parked in MY company funded carpark. And I don’t pay FBT.

James-T-Kirk9:55 am 20 Sep 06

Wow, What an impact. I had to drop the kids of at school, pick up a co-worker, and park in my company funded parking spot.

Kind of like what I do every day!

Most consultants I know don’t bother with the ACT govt – they don’t have enough $$.

“Maybe they can fine themselves $20K…”

God no!

By the time they outsource the fine process to their buddies and the consultants take their cut you’ll bankrupt the Territory!

Pretty soon the ALP MLA/MP folk will go on strike too. Not that it will affect anything.

Sonic on the radio said thathe is going to allow the law (he has no choice in the matter) to take its course. That means fines of $20,000 on each driver for this ‘wildcat’ action.

GO SONIC!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

yeah the rex carpark had quite a few more cars at 0715 this morn.

I waited at my bus stop for about 10 minutes thinking the same thing as Tempestas, untill someone taking their morning walk took pity on me and told me that he had heard on the radio there was a bus strike.
So I walked home and my partner had to drive me to work.

I stood for 20 minutes at my bus stop, thought gee there is no buses gooing the other way as well as mine being late. Some other commuter said that he had heard there was a bus strike, so I rang home to confirm then took the car leaving my wife carless for the day.

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