Transit Offer Is Final, NYC Official Says

By DEEPTI HAJELA

NEW YORK – The head of New York City’s bus and subway system said Friday that the contract proposal rejected by labor a few hours earlier was management’s final offer.

“There is no more,” said Peter Kalikow, chairman of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. “Our offer that is out there is the best that were going to come up with.”

There was no immediate response from the union.

Gary Dellaverson, chief negotiator for the MTA, said, “We haven’t made a determination about when to certify the existence of an impasse.” And Kalikow said of the union negotiators, “We’re ready to talk to them if they want.” But he said no talks were scheduled.

The union rejection of the contract offer and Kalikow’s reaction came after a midnight deadline for a crippling strike passed without any agreement or any walkout. Instead, the transit union’s president called for a selective strike against two private bus lines, apparently to start Monday, and moved the general strike deadline to 12:01 a.m. Tuesday.