Union president reacts to private member's bill to declare TTC an essential service

Toronto transit workers' union president Bob Kinnear issued a statement Monday calling former McGuinty cabinet member David Caplan’s private member’s bill to declare the TTC an essential service “a pathetic political ploy to deflect attention away from his government’s chronic negligence of public transit.”

Kinnear argued that the 52 hours in service disruptions in the last six years due to his union’s job actions paled in comparison to the daily delays endured by TTC riders because of what he described as the McGuinty government's unwillingness to restore provincial financial support for TTC operations.

"Every single day, TTC riders put up with service delays, mechanical breakdowns, and vehicles that are so crowded they have to leave riders stranded at bus stops for as long as 20 minutes,” said Kinnear. “There are also the regular fare hikes that greatly exceed both the rate of inflation and any increase in TTC workers' wages.”