Response to Scott's Corner post on "To Strike or not to Strike"

The commentary “To Strike or not to Strike” on Scott’s Corner provides a good perspective of the conflicts going on between the Capital Metro management and the union of workers. The author thoroughly explores the viewpoints from both sides and explains the explicit as well as implicit intents of the management and the union. All the aspects discussed are then put into the current context – the economic crisis in particular. The author’s suggestion that the union and the management should agree on a $1,000 bonus without a contract or with an addition of a 3% increase in the second year for a two-year contract is seemingly an intermediate option. Considering the current economic situation, where those who are getting laid off would rather take a pay cut, the above option seems reasonable. Also, since they are not committed for more than a year, they can renegotiate the terms at the end of a year when things could have improved. Also, like the author says, striking at this time is not the best course of action.

The current proposal seems to provide a good option but with a three year commitment. The current proposal is to provide $1,200 bonus in lieu of a raise for the first year, and then provide 3% raise for the second and third year. The catch here is that this raise does not come entirely at the beginning of the year but is broken down at every six months. That would mean that workers would get 1.5% raise every six months beginning from the second year. According to me, if the union is looking for a long term work commitment, the proposal from the management seems good, but if they want the ability to negotiate better pay once the economy improves, they should avoid getting into a three-year term, and try to negotiate something shorter.

Transportation Alternatives in Austin

Austin has been a rapidly growing metro area for the last couple of decades. The population has increased 43.8 % from 1997 to 2007. However, the transportation system has not kept pace with the increasing growth. For sustainable long-term growth of a city, good infrastructure is very important. In the case of Austin, the transportation infrastructure has hardly been able to meet the existing demands. Transportation network could be considered the framework for the urban built environment. And for the city to function effectively, alternative modes of transportation are essential.

Population Growth 1997-2007

Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census and The Austin Chamber of Commerce.

In the last few months, when the gas prices were at an all time high, residents of Austin had very little choice but to drive their car. The reason for this is the inefficiency of the current transit system in Austin. Capital Metro has several buses running on several routes, but the frequency and routing are probably insufficient to serve the needs of a majority of the residents. Sometimes one has to transfer two to three times to reach a destination which is just a few miles away. And not surprisingly, the total travel time by bus becomes more than walking. And high gas prices are only one reason for someone looking for alternative transportation. The congestion on Austin’s highways is pretty bad during commute hours, and people looking for transit alternative at that time also have little option. One may argue that with the developing technology, there might be fewer reasons to physically travel for work or other chores. But statistics have not provided too high percentage for people working from home. In contrast, the average distance traveled by a person and the average time spent to travel to work has been on an increase.

Capital MetroRail Plan

Source: Capital Metro

One may find relief from the fact that Capital Metro is expected to open the MetroRail line in a few months now (earlier plan was to open the rail line in Fall 2008). However, if the bus service and connections and transfer remain the same, the commuter rail is not going to help as much. Ideally, the integration of the rail and bus service would provide reliable and efficient transportation alternative to the residents of the greater Austin metro area.