(The following story by Peter Howe appeared on the Boston Globe website on January 18.)
BOSTON — Amtrak and the passenger railroad’s union have reached a contract settlement, averting a strike that could have crippled rail transportation in Boston, Senator Edward M. Kennedy said this morning.
Details weren’t immediately available. Amtrak employees have been working without a contract for eight years.
“The settlement that’s been achieved is an extraordinary achievement that will benefit all the members of the Amtrak community — the employees, the company, the passengers, and the entire country,” Kennedy said in a prepared statement.
Amtrak employees could have gone on strike Jan. 30, a move that would have snarled MBTA commuter rail trains that operate into Amtrak-operated South Station.