A bus strike has been averted after AC Transit management and the bus drivers' union agreed to terms on a new contract.
Union members ratified the deal late Friday.
The new deal provides a wage increase of 9.5 percent that will be phased in over the next three years of the contract, officials said.
Friday's deal eliminates a threatened strike that was twice averted -- once when the two sides reached a tentative agreement and a second time when Gov. Jerry Brown ordered a cooling off period during failed negotiations.
AC Transit began negotiating with Amalgamated Transit Union Local 192 in March. ATU represents the agency’s bus operators and mechanics.
The contract now heads to AC Transit's Board of Directors for approval. Trustees are scheduled to vote on the deal at its next scheduled meeting on Jan. 8.
