ALERT - Transport Affected by 24-hour Athens Gen. Strike On Tuesday

(AMNA) - Greece's umbrella trade union are protesting against the latest omnibus bill tabled in Parliament that legislates for prior actions and reforms demanded by Greece's creditors in return for further bailout loans. Both ADEDY and GSEE announced the strike on Tuesday, when the debate on the omnibus bill is set to begin, and a strike rally at Klafthmonos Square in central Athens. They will be joined by members of POE-OTA and the state health system employees union federation POEDHN, who have urged their members to participate in the Monday rally and Tuesday's strike action.

A nationwide protest rally in Syntagma Square outside Parliament has been organised for 8:30 p.m. on Tuesday night, the day before the vote on the omnibus bill is scheduled to take place. This is to be followed by an all-night vigil and efforts are being made to organise a concert.

On Wednesday, when the vote on the omnibus bill is to take place, there will be a protest rally and a march to Parliament.

The Metro, electric railway and tram will operate normally on Tuesday, but the rest of mass transportation and flights are either to go on shorter schedules or be cancelled, following a call for a general strike issued by the private and public sector employee unions GSEE and ADEDY over the new omnibus bill in Parliament that calls for transfers and gradual layoffs of civil service personnel.

The transportation schedules for Tuesday are as follows:

- Buses and trolleys will operate from 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. (but they will go on the road at 10:00 a.m. and start returning to depots at 8:00 p.m.)

- The last runs of suburban (proastiakos) and national rail trains Monday night and early on Wednesday morning will not operate, to follow the 24-hour limits of the strike. Two trains, covering the Olympia-Pyrgos-Katakolo and A. Lechona-Milies routes that are popular with tourists, will not be affected.

- The suburban railroad will not run all day Tuesday, while the Metro will stop at Doukissis Plakentias station and not continue to the airport, which will be served by bus lines X95 (from/to Syntagma Square) and X97 (from/to Dafni station), running however only between 9:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. (The section leading to the airport is run by the suburban railway, which is on strike.)

- Otherwise, the Metro, electric railway and tram lines will operate as usual.

Because of a work stoppage from 12:00 noon to 4:00 p.m. on Tuesday called by the federation of Civil Aviation Service unions (OSYPA), the only flights that will operate are as follows:

- Civil and military aircraft flying above or crossing the Athens FIR; Greek and foreign military aircraft on scheduled exercises; emergency flights, including those for evacuation to hospitals or other emergencies; flights with country leaders on board