(Updated at 4:45 p.m.) Local elected officials, including Rep. Gerry Connolly, gathered in Lorton on Wednesday to celebrate the introduction of 42 new electric buses to the division’s fleet.
These buses, which were funded by a $16.5 million federal grant announced in January, join the 18 electric buses already in operation. Although the division currently operates over 1,600 diesel buses, county officials emphasized that these new electric buses mark the start of a larger transition.
Updated at 9:45 p.m. on 3/6/2024 — Fairfax Connector workers with ATU Local 689 voted today (Wednesday) to ratify a new contract with bus operator Transdev, ending a 15-day strike, the union announced.
The bus system will officially resume service on Friday (March 8), according to Transdev and the Fairfax County Department of Transportation.
(Updated at 11:20 a.m.) A boy was taken to the hospital yesterday (Sunday) after a crash near Inova Fairfax Hospital.
The Fairfax County Police Department reported at 6:32 p.m. that officers were on scene of a crash involving a sedan and a bus on Gallows Road at Anderson Road in Merrifield.
(Updated at 10:30 a.m.) Fairfax Connector is now in its sixth consecutive day without service, as workers continue their strike for better pay, benefits and working conditions.
More than 600 bus drivers and mechanics ceased working last Thursday (Feb. 22) when their union — Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 689 — called for a strike after months of negotiations with Transdev, the private company that operates Fairfax Connector, for a new labor contract to replace one that expired on Nov. 30.
The Fairfax County School Board is moving ahead with its plan to change middle school start times.
According to Fairfax County Public Schools, research has shown that later start times could positively influence student academic performance and mental and emotional well-being.
Updated at 3:55 p.m. — Fairfax Connector service will stay suspended at least through this weekend (Feb. 24-25) as drivers and mechanics continue their strike, the Fairfax County Department of Transportation has announced.
FCDOT says it “expects negotiations to continue in good faith with the goal of completing a new contract very soon.”
(Updated at 11:35 a.m.) Fairfax Connector workers have launched a strike after months of negotiations for a new labor contract with Transdev, the company that operates Fairfax County’s bus service.
Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 689, which represents about 638 bus operators and mechanics for Fairfax Connector, announced the strike just after midnight today (Thursday). Workers began hitting picket lines at garages in Herndon, Lorton and on West Ox Road in the Fairfax area at 2 a.m.
Fairfax County Public Schools is using up its first snow day of the year, canceling all classes and other activities on school grounds tomorrow (Tuesday) as flurries continue to blanket the D.C. area.
Affected activities include extracurricular programs, sports practices, field trips, outside recreation classes, adult education classes and the School Age Child Care (SACC) centers.
Fairfax County Public Schools will more than double the number of electric buses in its fleet, thanks to a new federal grant.
The local school system has been awarded $16.59 million as a winner of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s inaugural Clean School Bus program grants competition. The other winner announced yesterday (Monday) was also from Virginia: Newport News Public Schools will receive $525,000.
(Updated at 4 p.m.) Hundreds of Fairfax Connector workers could strike if contract talks between their union and employer break down.
Nearly a month after the end of their existing contract with Transdev, which operates Fairfax County’s public bus system, union drivers, mechanics and other employees voted on Dec. 29 to authorize a strike, the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 689 announced yesterday.
