Andover's fare-free bus service is back. Teamsters Local 170 and Merrimack Valley Transit reached a one-year deal Sunday, ending a 10-day strike that had disrupted service for more than 13,000 daily riders across the region.

The Andover Shuttle, Route 2 to Andover Square, connections to Lawrence, North Andover and Merrimack College, and the miniMeVa paratransit service have all resumed.

Drivers walked out July 1 after rejecting a three-year contract 102-16. That deal offered a 25% raise over three years, but drivers would have lost voluntary Saturday overtime — a real pay cut in practice. Drivers currently earn $29.50 an hour on weekdays, jumping to an effective $44.25 with Saturday overtime. The rejected proposal would have paid just $34 base plus a $3 Saturday premium — more than $7 an hour less on Saturdays, according to driver Jose Paniagua.

The new one-year deal gives drivers an 11.8% raise while keeping their existing Saturday overtime structure, plus previously negotiated pension and health care improvements. It also creates a joint committee of drivers and agency leadership to work out a longer-term scheduling fix.

"The union workers are taking less money so they can get back to work and resume serving the riders they love and care for," said Jim Marks, a Teamsters Local 170 business agent, as drivers cheered outside MeVa headquarters.

MeVa just wrapped its highest-ridership year in 52 years, serving 3.3 million passengers — about 60% above pre-pandemic levels. Administrator Noah Berger said restoring service was the priority, but warned that leaning on voluntary Saturday overtime long-term could still force budget or scheduling changes down the road. The underlying Saturday question isn't fully resolved — it's set to come up again in negotiations around July 2027.

Riders should expect minor delays as vehicles return to full service.