Bus service will likely cease in Lane County on Monday if today’s mediation session between the Lane Transit District and the Amalgamated Transit Union Division 757 does not produce a contract agreement.
ATU has declared a strike date of March 7, the first day of Dead Week at the University.
If bus drivers strike, the University will be sharing a free shuttle service with PeaceHealth Medical Group, open to anyone with a University student identification card.
The shuttle will leave the Lane County Fairgrounds at 796 W. 13th Ave. and arrive at Sacred Heart Medical Center, 1255 Hilyard St., every 10 to 20 minutes from 5:20 a.m. until 11:30 p.m., according to a memo from Department of Public Safety Interim Director Tom Hicks addressed to University faculty and staff.
Hicks and ASUO Community and Housing Coordinator Scott Lu said students and staff are encouraged to either ride bikes or walk to campus to avoid an influx of vehicles.
“Parking in the area is already severely constrained without the added demand for parking for those who normally ride the bus now driving to campus,” Hicks wrote in the memo.
“The ASUO exec is really trying to recommend that students ride their bikes or walk because of the influx of cars,” Lu said.
There will be specific parking spots reserved for carpools, and carpool parking permits can be picked up at no cost from DPS, Lu said.
Parking will also be available free of charge at Autzen Stadium from 7 a.m. until 6 p.m. Monday through Friday for the duration of the bus strike. Security personnel will patrol the parking lot and the walkway to campus, and Lu said the ASUO is looking for student volunteers to help keep the area secure.
The Assault Prevention Shuttle will be operating at its usual hours of 6 p.m. until midnight, Sunday through Thursday, and 6 p.m. until 2 a.m., Friday through Saturday.
Students with disabilities are encouraged to contact disability services for assistance in securing transportation, Lu said.
There is not much else that can be done to help solve the potential bus crisis, Lu said, and even if there were, the ASUO does not want to attempt to provide an alternative service to LTD because it is important not to take sides on such a major issue.
“We don’t want to do anything that could be considered strike-breaking,” Lu said.
Lane Community College, whose main campus is located in the south Eugene hills at 4000 E. 30th Ave., has information about different carpooling resources available on its Web site, lanecc.edu.
LCC Public Information Officer Joan Aschim said the college’s efforts focus on informing students of the possible strike and of available carpool options.
Students are being encouraged to talk with their instructors if they are unable to find transportation and if bike riding or walking is not feasible, Aschim said.
“It is students’ and employees’ responsibilities to get themselves to class and work,” Aschim said.
LTD and the union have been involved in a 10-month dispute that has resulted in civil case filings, an unfair labor practice complaint and union allegations of a gross misuse of taxpayer money by LTD management.
The LTD Board of Directors met in an executive session Thursday to discuss today’s meeting.
LTD Service Planning and Marketing Manager Andy Vobora said
LTD General Manager Ken Hamm will participate in the meeting via phone from Washington, D.C., where Vobora said he is lobbying with other city and state officials as part of a United Front transportation lobbying effort.
About 13 percent of University students and 5 percent of staff members use LTD’s services on a daily basis, according to a recent LTD survey.

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