New York City Spends $7K a Year on School Buses… Per Student

The situation surrounding this year's strike is similar to a strike in 1979 that lasted three months. Essentially, the city is looking to cut costs by putting its contracts with private bus operators up for bid, a move that many bus drivers fear will jeopardize their job security. But Mayor Bloomberg says that he's also trying to undo many years of bad management. "For decades, the city has embraced anticompetitive measures and carried on business relations with an array of bus companies, including some that have been implicated in bribery, been under the sway of organized crime and, in one case, run by a man who displayed a pistol at a negotiating session," explains The Times's Al Baker. "Both union leaders and city employees have gone to prison for shaking down bus companies, offering in return labor peace, advance notice of inspections or approval of lucrative extra routes."