The shuttle bus strike that never was began on Tuesday, when a group of drivers, dissatisfied with a new schedule, work hours, and wages, decided to stage a game of economic chess.

"If we do go on strike, there'll be a public outcry," Michael T. Crehan '81, a leader of the protest efforts, predicted Wednesday. But Harvard's shuttle buses are not part of the Massachusetts Bay Transity Authority, and as the drivers' Monday deadline for a settlement approached, not a whimper of general support for the workers' crusade was heard.

Crehan said on Tuesday that "a majority" of the drivers supported the proposed strike, but after the University categorically refused to negotiate with the student workers the next day, it seemed many of the drivers were having second thoughts.

Tom E. Curtis '81, the shuttle driver co-captain, said Thursday that the threat of a strike had been "blown out of proportion" by a small group of seniors who had less at stake than the underclassmen.

Curtis said most of the drivers favored protesting the inequities of the new schedule--which cut day-time service in order to provide increased security with more night runs--through normal grievance procedures. He added that many drivers were satisfied with the current pay of $4.55 an hour.

The drivers' failure to exert ample pressure on the University may have resulted, in part, from their difficulty in pinpointing specific criticisms.

For example, while most of the drivers complained of a lack of input into the schedule-making process, James A. Sinner '81, the shuttle captain and a representative to the subcommittee of the Committee on Houses and Undergraduate Life that drew up the new schedule, acknowledged Wednesday that he did not seek enough comment from his fellow workers.

A general target of the protest were the bureaucrats in University Hall, who the drivers said had treated them with contempt. So when Buildings and Grounds officials, who operate the shuttle service, said Thursday they were willing to at least listen to the drivers' requests, the shuttle stalemate was over.