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spmarshall
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Strike shuts down TTC
Many caught standing at bus stops waiting for pick-ups that will never come
May 29, 2006. 06:36 AM
CANADIAN PRESS
Subway stations were shut, buses and streetcars were parked in garages and hundreds of thousands of angry commuters had to find alternate ways to work early Monday after the city’s transit system was shut down.
Toronto Transit Commission spokeswoman Marilyn Bolton confirmed service for 700,000 people was halted following “an illegal job action†by transit workers. She offered no other comment.
The shutdown caught Toronto’s commuters by surprise. Many had gone to bed Sunday night unaware of a pending shutdown.
“Maybe I’ll take a taxi, which is a lot of money,†said Egan Vasconcellos, as he waited in vain for a streetcar on a downtown street. “I can’t really afford that ... so I’m sticking it out. Maybe they’ll come, maybe they won’t. I don’t know.â€
At bus stops throughout the city commuters stood in groups or by themselves, many on cellular telephones trying to beg a lift from neighbours or co-workers.
Gaston Willis, 31, a cleaner at the downtown Rogers Centre, said many Torontonians will be angry.
“The last time it happened, it was chaos,†he said. “This time, it will probably be worse because there are a lot more people in Toronto then there was a couple of years ago. A lot more people are taking the public transit system now because gas prices are expensive. It’s crazy.â€
Factory worker Silvia Gallant heard about a possible service disruption on the news Sunday, but had no choice but to hope for the best and wait.
“What else can I do?†she said and threw her cigarette into the empty street.
Small clusters of maintenance workers gathered before sunrise at an east end transit yard. They shouted at managers trying to persuade them to return to work.
Union officials could not be reached for comment.
A union-management battle has been brewing for months over several issues including driver security, health premiums, job evaluations and shifting for employees who do track maintenance and cleaning for the TTC.
The TTC wants 53 of 87 janitors and 53 of 91 subway track workers permanently moved to the night shift from day jobs as part of a cost-savings measure.
Toronto Mayor David Miller called on the province’s labour minister over the weekend for help, but a provincial mediator wasn’t expected to contact both sides until Monday to try to resolve the issues.
Many caught standing at bus stops waiting for pick-ups that will never come
May 29, 2006. 06:36 AM
CANADIAN PRESS
Subway stations were shut, buses and streetcars were parked in garages and hundreds of thousands of angry commuters had to find alternate ways to work early Monday after the city’s transit system was shut down.
Toronto Transit Commission spokeswoman Marilyn Bolton confirmed service for 700,000 people was halted following “an illegal job action†by transit workers. She offered no other comment.
The shutdown caught Toronto’s commuters by surprise. Many had gone to bed Sunday night unaware of a pending shutdown.
“Maybe I’ll take a taxi, which is a lot of money,†said Egan Vasconcellos, as he waited in vain for a streetcar on a downtown street. “I can’t really afford that ... so I’m sticking it out. Maybe they’ll come, maybe they won’t. I don’t know.â€
At bus stops throughout the city commuters stood in groups or by themselves, many on cellular telephones trying to beg a lift from neighbours or co-workers.
Gaston Willis, 31, a cleaner at the downtown Rogers Centre, said many Torontonians will be angry.
“The last time it happened, it was chaos,†he said. “This time, it will probably be worse because there are a lot more people in Toronto then there was a couple of years ago. A lot more people are taking the public transit system now because gas prices are expensive. It’s crazy.â€
Factory worker Silvia Gallant heard about a possible service disruption on the news Sunday, but had no choice but to hope for the best and wait.
“What else can I do?†she said and threw her cigarette into the empty street.
Small clusters of maintenance workers gathered before sunrise at an east end transit yard. They shouted at managers trying to persuade them to return to work.
Union officials could not be reached for comment.
A union-management battle has been brewing for months over several issues including driver security, health premiums, job evaluations and shifting for employees who do track maintenance and cleaning for the TTC.
The TTC wants 53 of 87 janitors and 53 of 91 subway track workers permanently moved to the night shift from day jobs as part of a cost-savings measure.
Toronto Mayor David Miller called on the province’s labour minister over the weekend for help, but a provincial mediator wasn’t expected to contact both sides until Monday to try to resolve the issues.