Dozens of Port Authority routes out of service Monday following weekend of call-offs

Dozens of Port Authority bus routes across Allegheny County were out of service early Monday, a continuation of the weekend service disruptions spurred by employee call-offs, an apparent protest against the authority’s looming vaccine mandate.

Port Authority sent out the first alert at about 6:10 a.m., warning on its service alert Twitter page that the 43-Bailey stops due for pickup at 5:54 a.m. at South Hills Junction and 6:23 a.m. at Sixth and Smithfield were out of service.

Other routes affected included the G31-Bridgeville Flyer, 83-Bedford, 61B-Braddock, 57-Hazelwood, 51-Carrick/West Mifflin, P3-East Busway and P16-Penn Hills Flyer.

For a full list of routes and stops affected, check twitter.com/pghtransitalert

41-Bower Hill due to pick up from Lesnett @ Bank (6528) at 7:53 am is out of service.

— Port Authority Alerts (@PghTransitAlert) March 14, 2022

57-Hazelwood due to pick up from Waterfront Terminus (20294) at 7:42 am is out of service.

— Port Authority Alerts (@PghTransitAlert) March 14, 2022

P3-East Busway-Oakland due to pick up from 5th Ave @ Robinson (2640) at 7:40 am is out of service.

— Port Authority Alerts (@PghTransitAlert) March 14, 2022

Port Authority CEO Katharine Kelleman had warned on Friday that with 500 employees potentially facing discipline over the covid-19 vaccine mandate, riders could face significant disruptions for weeks.

The union representing many Port Authority employees, Amalgamated Transit Union Local 85, had fought in court for an injunction against the mandate, but an Allegheny County judge last week ruled against the union. Common Pleas Judge John McVay said the union’s attorneys failed to show that employees would suffer immediate and irreparable harm if an injunction wasn’t issued.

The authority’s mandate goes into effect Tuesday, and employees who remain unvaccinated will be placed on paid leave pending individual hearings next week. About 80% of the roughly 2,700 employees are already vaccinated, spokesman Adam Brandolph has said.

A day after Kelleman’s warning, the Port Authority saw “a significant number” of employees call off from work in apparent protest against the mandate. Brandolph noted that the number of call-offs was higher than would be expected even considering the snowy weather and St. Patrick’s Day parade.

To all of our colleagues who reported to work today: THANK YOU ????

— Port Authority PGH (@PGHtransit) March 13, 2022

“I understand that our union employees want to stand in solidarity with their co-workers, but I’m encouraging those employees who called off today to get back to work,” Kelleman said Saturday. “The people of Allegheny County rely on our services too much for ATU Local 85 to play these games.”

She said the union had its day in court and lost, and union leaders should encourage members to get vaccinated rather than continuing to fight.

In a Facebook post addressing union members, ATU Local 85 President Ross Nicotero wrote that management’s “ignorance and unaccountability will face consequences.”

Speaking directly to Kelleman, Nicotero implied that Kelleman had threatened to include a law enforcement presence at disciplinary hearings next week.

“If you follow our historic process, there will be no need for law enforcement presence, which will serve no purpose except to aggravate an already unpleasant situation,” he wrote. “Just because you are now fumbling to address the fallout of your wrong-headed decision does not mean we will depart from our long-standing practices and processes.”