Gridlock continues as unions firm on strike

The Mexican standoff continued on Monday, with neither the striking transport staff nor the officials finding common ground.

Even after Transport Minister MR Vijayabaskar warned of legal action against those transport workers who do not turn up for work, union leaders have announced that they will continue to strike and stage protests with their family members across the state.

On Monday, day five of the bus strike, office-goers and students were put to a lot of hardship. While the Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) claimed that 50 per cent of the buses were in service, only a skeletal number were visible on arterial roads. MTC official sources said that the officials operated 45 private buses on Sunday. However, the number of private buses fell to a single digit on Monday. “The reason is that we had roped in school and college van drivers. Since Monday was a working day, those drivers and vehicles did not reach any depots,” said an official.

The lack of small buses, has caused greater inconvenience to commuters in the interior areas. “Small buses play main role in providing connectivity to main bus stands and railway stations,” pointed out P Viswanathan, coordinator of Chitlapakkam Residents Welfare Association.

An MTC official claimed that they operated 1,700 MTC buses on Monday. “Transport workers have slowly started returning to work and we are hopeful of the strike ending soon,” the official exuded confidence. When asked about the loss due to strike, the official quipped “The loss would amount to several crores.”