Any ideas how/if the NJT strike will affect NE Amtrak?

Hope this is the best place to post-
We're scheduled for a Trenton-DC round trip next week (3/13-16th) on
Amtrak, and holding our breath.

Anyone want to speculate IF the NJT strike occurs, will it affect Amtrak
schedules? Doesn't Amtrak own the ROW?

Tried calling Amtrak, they were USELESS; after finally reaching a human
he had no clue.

Amtrak owns the ROW, so your train shouldn't be affected.

I don't know how things will play out in this situation, but one thing that has happened often in the past is that the transit union will put up a picket line where Amtrak employees report (even though they know the affected carrier will get a restraining order), and it may take several hours to get the order issued by a judge (on a Sunday!) and disperse the pickets--Amtrak knows what numbers to call. If the past is any guide, any such problem will be cleared up later in the day.

secondary picketing is illegal under railway labor act, and could cost those that participate their jobs.

Amtrak should treat this like thanksgiving and run 15 car trains stopping at the NJ Amtrak stops.

It is a business opportunity for them.

DutchRailnut wrote:secondary picketing is illegal under railway labor act, and could cost those that participate their jobs.

Very true and there is always a federal and state judge available on the phone for an instant over the phone order. I would expect that the NJ Attorney General's office would be ready similar to support for law enforcement officers who need the on call judge to get warrants for searches when time is of the essence.

I would hope the union operators of the Amtrak trains would show some solidarity and NOT service NJT stops. This isn't a case of a union being greedy or something, these men and women have been working for years upon years with no contract.

Anyone who suggests undermining the strike clearly doesn't care about these hard working people.

DutchRailnut wrote:secondary picketing is illegal under railway labor act, and could cost those that participate their jobs.

Isn't that one of the things that often get negotiated away in the final settlement?

SemperFidelis wrote:I would hope the union operators of the Amtrak trains would show some solidarity and NOT service NJT stops.

Has anyone suggested that Amtrak trains serve NJT stops?

SemperFidelis wrote:I would hope the union operators of the Amtrak trains would show some solidarity and NOT service NJT stops. This isn't a case of a union being greedy or something, these men and women have been working for years upon years with no contract.

Anyone who suggests undermining the strike clearly doesn't care about these hard working people.

How about showing solidarity with other union workers who need to get to work?

Yeah Amtrak won't service NJT stops. To suggest they should out of solidarity to non-railroaders makes no sense.

Also, illegal.

Amtrak could be affected if Transit trains come to a stop on the NEC at midnight when the crew goes on strike.

chuchubob wrote:Amtrak could be affected if Transit trains come to a stop on the NEC at midnight when the crew goes on strike.

There will be no trains stopping at midnight in the middle of NEC. All trains will stop only after getting to an yard. Trains cannot be left in the middle of a main line or even at a station. Imagine the train starting to roll down the tracks by itself after brake failure. Who will be liable? That would be the end of the union and the crew. Employees might strike, but they are not planning on creating havoc. They will get the trains to their yards before walking out.

EuroStar wrote:

chuchubob wrote:Amtrak could be affected if Transit trains come to a stop on the NEC at midnight when the crew goes on strike.

There will be no trains stopping at midnight in the middle of NEC. All trains will stop only after getting to an yard. Trains cannot be left in the middle of a main line or even at a station. Imagine the train starting to roll down the tracks by itself after brake failure. Who will be liable? That would be the end of the union and the crew. Employees might strike, but they are not planning on creating havoc. They will get the trains to their yards before walking out.

I think you're probably right, but, fair use quote from this article...

But the main focus of the meeting was a potential train shutdown. Martin maintained that NJ Transit is negotiating with the unions to avoid a chaotic cancellation of service that might leave trains – and passengers – stuck on active tracks. Burkert said that was not true.

“We offered to talk to them about how to do a shutdown in an orderly way, so that people wouldn’t get stranded,” Burkert said. “They refused to talk to us.”