At Lincoln Center, performances of The Nutcracker at New York City Ballet, Lucia di Lammermoor at the Metropolitan Opera, and a sing-along Messiah at Avery Fisher Hall will all be held as scheduled this evening, as will performances later in the week. Ticket holders who are unable to travel to the center may exchange or donate their tickets in some cases, but refunds are not available. More detailed information is available at www.lincolncenter.org.

Carnegie Hall performances will also take place as scheduled during the strike. Tonight's performances include a presentation of Messiah by Musica Sacra. According to a spokesperson, the hall "will make every effort to accommodate" those holding tickets for Carnegie Hall presentations, "with exchanges or refunds if necessary." Outside producers who have rented the hall, however, currently do not plan to offer exchanges or refunds. Call 212-247-7800 for more information.

Performances at City Center by the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater will continue. Ticket holders who are unable to travel to the venue should hold on to their tickets and call 212-247-0430 ext. 238 after the strike is over in order to exchange them.

Performances of Savion Glover's Visions of a Bible at the Joyce Theater will continue as scheduled. Neither refunds nor exhanges are available, but unused tickets will be honored for any performance within a year if seats are available. Patrons should call the box office (212-242-0800) at noon on the date of a performance to see if they may use their tickets.

At Symphony Space on the Upper West Side, performances including tonight's Bending Towards the Light: A Jazz Nativity are going ahead as planned. According to a spokesperson, no refunds or exchanges are available unless an outside producer chooses to cancel a performance. Call 212-864-5400 for more information.

The 92nd Street Y is considering whether to cancel performances and other events on a day-by-day basis. Tonight's musical performances, lectures, and films are going on as planned, but classes are canceled.

The strike by New York City's transit workers began at approximately 3 a.m. this morning, four hours after union leaders rejected a final offer from the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. It has halted all city bus and subway service, although commuter rail lines from Connecticut, New Jersey, Long Island, and upstate New York continue to run. Those attempting to reach Manhattan by car are slowed by massive traffic jams and, during the morning commute, restrictions on cars carrying fewer than four passengers.

There is no immediate indication of when the strike will end. Transit strikes in 1980 and 1966 lasted 11 and 12 days, respectively.