Businesses lost $1 billion in revenue during last week’s three-day transit strike, Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Sunday.
Transit workers walked off the job Tuesday, shutting down the bus and subway service that millions of commuters rely on each day. Service resumed Friday after the Transport Workers Union agreed to return to work while contract negotiations continue.
“This morning, thousands of hardworking New Yorkers dearly miss the wages and tips they lost during what would normally have been a busy pre-Christmas week,” Bloomberg said in his weekly radio address.
The day the strike ended, several economists said the city’s estimate of $400 million a day in lost revenue appeared too high and failed to account for offsets, such as employees working from home. Bloomberg didn’t explain how he reached the $1 billion figure.
Negotiations between the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and the TWU have been under a media blackout since the strike ended.