ROME, April 1 (UPI) -- A 24-hour strike by local transit workers paralyzed Italian cities Friday with buses, trams and metro rail systems all affected.
The walkout was scheduled to end at 9 p.m., the Italian news agency ANSA reported. Local transit unions have been without a national contract for four years.
Marcello Panettoni, head of a coalition of unions representing transit workers, accused local government agencies of starving mass transit.
"We are seriously worried for the fate of local public transport," he said.
Officials said the strike involved the entire country except the island of Sardinia. The state-owned railway company said almost three-quarters of its trains were running and said commuters would be able to use them during the rush hour.
Massive traffic jams were reported on Rome's major arteries. Local transit officials in Milan said its three metro lines were not running and more than 60 percent of bus and tram drivers did not report for work.
In Naples, fewer than one-third of local buses were on the street, officials said.
