Evening star., 1948-10-26
BY the Associated Press

imately 3,5O0,OO0 New Workers
were stranded without normal
transportation today when $500
members of the CIO Transport
Workers Union walked of, their
Jobs.
Promptly at 9 o'clock, drivers Of
1000 buses and hundreds of street.
cars discharged their passengers,
wherever they happened to be, and
headed back to their garages to
begin the city's largest surface
transportation strike. Seven pri-
vately-owned lines are involved.
The walkout climaxing a dispute
over retroactive wages averaging
about $500 man, hit the city and
parts OF suburban Westchester Coun-
ty at the morning rush hour.
The words and actions of Lex
ington avenue bus driver typifed
scenes thtbughout the city.
"Way Of Getting Even"
ITS 9 o'clock" he announced to
passengers, stopping his northbound
bus at Seventy-ninth street. Every
body out. This is our way of getting
even"
He gestured toward a corner drug
store. Buy some footpads and start
walking"
Strangers crowded together in
taxis bound for the same general
destinations. A big traffic jam de-
veloped on Lexington avenue be.
tween Ninth-sixth and One Hun
dredth streets as buses turned back
toward their garages.
The city's well-known thorough
fares-Fifth and Madison avenues
and many other streets were emptied
of buses.
All facilities of the city owned
subway and elevated lines in Man
haitian Queens and the Bronx were
geared to rush-hour service for the
duration Of the strike.
| Extra buses rolled on city-owned
lines in Mahattan and Queens to
relieve the congestion.
Quill Sees Long Strike.
Michael j. Quill, TWU interna-
tional president, declared the strike
may last for days of weeks" He
added that there will be nothing
rolling from now on"
The walkout is directed against
the State Public Service Commission
in an effort to force the granting of
permanent fare increases which
would make possible the payment Of
about $5,000,000 in retroactive wage
increases.
The commission, accused by the
union of undue delay, yesterday re-
fused to be forced into speeding up
decisions on pending applications
for fare increases.
Mass Demonstration Planned.
| Strikers planned a mass demon
stration later. today against the PSC
outside its headquarters in the
Woolworth Building.
| Companies struck are the Third
and Fifth Avenue Bus Cos, the New
York City Omnibus Corp. and the
Avenue B and East Broadway
Transit Co. and Queens-Nassau
Transit Lines, Jamaica Buses, Inc,
and Steinway Omnibus Corp.
| Last-minute efforts to prevent the
walkout failed yesterday and last
night.
An appeal by Mayor O'Dwyer for
postponement of strike action was
rejected by Mr.. Quill.
Strikers May Go to Albany.
| Informed that Commission Chair
man Milo r. Maltbie had decided
to have the board meet in Albany
instead Of New York City today, Mr.,
Quill said the $500 transport work.
ers might follow the commission to
the capital city for a demonstration.
! Mr.. Quill said the commission was
"sneaking out" of New York City in
the midst of the dispute. Mr.. Malt
bic said he was unconcerned about
the unions threats.
! Late last night, the TWUs 65-man
negotiating committee voted unani-
mously to take the men off the
seven systems, and the union shop
stewards on the systems voted to
carry out strike plans"
The strike was called against all
seven companies despite the fact
that only the Third Avenue line has
failed to arrange for paying at least
part Of the retroactivity worked out
under Mayor ODwyer's auspices last
May.
Down payments of s1o0 man
1See TRANSTT pace a. -