There were no buses rolling on St. John on Wednesday, six days after the island's 10 transit workers were all laid off as part of the Public Works Department's cutting of the Vitran work force in half territorywide.
And on St. Croix, where about 30 Vitran workers were laid off last week, it appeared that, as of Wednesday, only three buses were in operation on the island.
Figures were not immediately available for St. Thomas, but authorities had said earlier that five buses were on the road.
Meantime, the head of one of the unions representing the public transit workers said Wednesday that the government has violated its contract with the Vitran workers by unilaterally suspending all scheduled leave, including vacations.
Luis "Tito" Morales, president of the United Steelworkers Union local, which represents Vitran workers on St. Thomas and St. John, expressed outrage Wednesday at a memo put out two days earlier by Public Works Commissioner Harold Thompson Jr. "I received a memo from Harold Thompson dated the 15th of May saying he is suspending all leave, including all vacation leave," he said. "And that goes against the contract."
Thompson and Karen Andrews, the government's chief negotiator, have cited a rise in absenteeism within the pared-down Vitran work force. With St. John's transit services now in the hands of St. Thomas drivers, the dispute over authorized leave may continue to impact public transit on the smaller island.
Thompson couldn't be reached Wednesday for comment on the status of the buses or on whether drivers were calling in sick. Mandrew said he was "not aware" of any sickout on St. Croix.
Because Vitran service on St. John just began in 1997, the employees hired for St. John had some of the least seniority in the union. So, when Turnbull administration officials decided to reduce the public transit work force by 62, the whole St. John crew was among the first to be laid off.
In announcing the coming layoffs several weeks ago, Thompson had said the cutbacks in personnel would reduce the number of buses serving St. Croix to five from seven and shrink the daily hours of operation to 14 from 16.
But as of Wednesday, Ralph Mandrew, president of the V.I. Workers Union, which represents Vitran employees on St. Croix, said, "The five buses they committed aren't running. There are three buses as far as I know."
Administration officials said the layoffs and cuts in service were needed because fare box revenues could not cover salaries, benefits, parts, fuel and other expenses of operating the public transit service. Vitran is approximately $12 million in the red despite V.I. government subsidies of $1.8 million per district. The officials note that the government is mandated to provide additional routes on St. John and to operate transportation for the disabled under the federal Americans with Disabilities Act, but these operations are unfunded.
Union leaders, meanwhile, say Vitran is foundering because of Public Works mismanagement. Mandrew said the current situation of fewer buses on the road than what was promised is a case in point.
"The question is," he said, "is the management sincere?"
Residents and workers in Cruz Bay stood at the roadside Wednesday trying to catch rides from passing motorists. One man standing near the Starfish Market said he had arrived on the 10 a.m. ferry from St. Thomas hoping to hop a bus for a quick trip to work in Coral Bay. Having met the unpleasant surprise of no bus service, he said he would be getting to work very late.
"It's unfair," he said.
Roberts had said she hoped to have the system back in smooth running order by the start of this week. But scheduling a commuting work force from St. Thomas and having to deal with the lack of a mechanic to service the St. John buses have posed serious setbacks.
Two of the laid-off St. John drivers are being kept on stand-by to substitute for late- arriving or no-show drivers drivers from St. Thomas. But it was mechanical problems that kept the sole bus scheduled to be in service on Wednesday parked instead in the Public Works yard at Gifft Hill.
"St. John is not working," Roberts said flatly Wednesday. "And it will not work as long as we don't have a mechanic."
