Biggest strike in 12 years halts public transportation in France

PARIS (AP) — Commuters roller-skated, drove and biked to work, or simply stayed home. The biggest strike in 12 years crippled France’s public transport system Thursday and handed President Nicolas Sarkozy the biggest political test of his young presidency.

The walkout, which came on the same day Sarkozy announced his divorce from his wife, appeared set to continue for a second day and showed that the president’s ambitious plans to reform France will not be smooth.

The government was unbowed in its determination to scrap special retirement privileges for some state workers — but unions also stood firm, hoping to repeat past successes in blocking efforts to make France more competitive.

As the president left town Thursday for an EU summit in Portugal, his compatriots were left in a nation immobilized:

More than 90 percent of high-speed TGV trains were not running. Only one Paris subway line — which is automatic, with no drivers — was running as usual. Train service to and from Britain and Belgium and beyond was moderately limited by the strike.

Thousands of marchers, many blowing bullhorns or setting off firecrackers, took to the streets in Paris — one of dozens of similar protests across the country.

As the workday wound down, the key question was how much momentum the strikers had to go on.

Paris subway workers voted to extend the strike to today.