(The following story by John Valenti appeared on the Newsday website on January 18.)
NEW YORK — Officials praised the resolution of a labor dispute between Amtrak and its workers that could have shut down Penn Station later this month and forced almost 100,000 Long Island Rail Road customers to scramble for commuting alternatives.
The agreement between Amtrak and nine labor unions was confirmed in an announcement from Amtrak released Friday morning.
The unions were scheduled to go on strike Jan. 30.
“By reaching these tentative agreements, we have averted a possible strike that could have had a crippling effect on the lives of millions of Americans,” Amtrak president and chief executive Alex Kummant said in a statement Friday.
New York Sen. Charles Schumer also expressed relief over the news, saying: “This is a fair and balanced settlement between Amtrak and its workers. It’s good that the two sides were able to come together in time to save riders from what would have been a crippling shutdown of our rail system.”
Details of the tentative pact have not been released.
“This is great news for LIRR customers,” LIRR president Helena Williams said in a statement. “We are pleased that Amtrak and its unions have reached agreement and avoided a strike.”
The deal is subject to a ratification vote by members of the nine unions involved, which include the American Train Dispatchers, the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and the International Association of Machinists & Aerospace Workers.
The agreement was welcome news for commuters who use the Long Island Rail Road, MetroNorth and PATH trains.
Amtrak owns and maintains the East River tunnels that LIRR trains use to access Penn Station. Amtrak also runs Penn Station — and LIRR officials said a strike would have forced the terminal to close.
Earlier this week, Williams announced contingency plans should there have been an Amtrak strike. The plans included rolling out a special P subway train to transport passengers to 34th Street-Herald Square, and having LIRR passengers transfer to other subway lines throughout Queens and Brooklyn.
Amtrak has never had a strike in its 36-year history.
(Staff writer Matthew Chayes contributed to this story.)