Scores of Jackson bus drivers and other transit workers formed picket lines early Monday, after contract talks over the weekend failed to produce an agreement between the transportation union and the Texas company under contract to run JTRAN.

More than two dozen strikers lined Highway 80 outside JTRAN’s headquarters, holding signs and chanting as some motorists honked in apparent support.

“Together we stand, divided we fall,” strikers chanted.

The strike is sure to disrupt the lives of scores of low-income and disabled Jacksonians who rely on the city’s bus system to get to work and travel across the region. 

Scott Crawford, a longtime disability activist, is one of many in the area who will be affected by the ongoing strike. Crawford held a press conference in his driveway on behalf of those suffering from disabilities, urging both MV Transportation and JTRAN to come to an agreement.

“I’m not sure how this is going to work out, but I can assure you there will be no winner,” Crawford told reporters. “Not the union, not MV and definitely not the city.”

Crawford, who uses a wheelchair, said his mobility would be further limited because of the strike.

“I’m still privileged enough to have at least one grocery store within wheelchair distance,” Crawford said. “But I can’t depend on that grocery store for all my grocery needs.”

Charles Tornes Jr., the president of the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1208, said his members sought to avert a strike but had no other choice.

“We want the citizens of Jackson to know we did not want to strike. We hope they stand with us,” Tornes said in a statement.

Though JTRAN is a publicly funded service, its unionized employees work for MV Transportation, which calls itself the largest privately owned transportation company in America. 

This is the second time in the past two years that the city’s public transportation workers have walked off the job. Workers went on a 14-day strike in September 2024.

In a statement, MV Transportation said it was disappointed the union went on strike.

“To be clear the union leadership’s actions in launching a strike hurt our valued passengers and the people of Jackson AND our teammates who are their dues-paying members,” said the company’s spokesperson, Hyma Moore Jr. 

Mayor John Horhn urged both sides to seek the help of a federal mediator.

“I respect the concerns raised by our JTRAN operators and I recognize the important role they play in keeping Jackson moving every day,” the mayor said in a statement.

“We are carefully evaluating both perspectives to determine what makes the most sense for our riders, our workers, and our taxpayers,” Horhn said.

“My priority is to minimize disruption in service while ensuring that our drivers are treated fairly and that residents who depend on public transit can continue to get to work, school, medical appointments, and other essential destinations,” he said.

He said MV Transportation had begun bringing in out-of-state drivers to keep some routes running. He said the city will be waiving requirements that JTRAN drivers hold Mississippi driver’s licenses for the duration of the strike – a move the union called “dangerous.”

“You don’t have a CDL, so you’re certainly not as trained as our operators here,” Costa said.

The two sides have been negotiating a collective bargaining agreement out of public view since a previous version expired in December. The union has been seeking competitive pay raises, while MV Transportation has proposed a number of changes to JTRAN, including new safety policies and the ability to hire drivers without commercial licenses to operate smaller vehicles for on-demand “microtransit” services.

The union authorized a strike in June and on Friday issued a 72-hour strike notice.

Update, 7/13/2026: This article has been updated with additional information about people affected by the JTRAN strike.