Sisters and Brothers,
The TTC is considering trying to prevent our members from carpooling to and from work. The TTC has no authority over what our members do outside of working hours. Until the TTC takes our members’ health and safety seriously, they shouldn’t be lecturing us about carpooling, especially when overcrowding on buses persists across the system.
The City of Toronto’s own Lockdown Guide makes it clear that sharing a car with people from other households is reasonable behaviour if masks are worn while in the vehicle.
Instead of telling members how to commute to work, the TTC should stop dragging its feet and reimplement the various safety protocols that were in place during the spring. For weeks, ATU Local 113 has urged the TTC to reimplement rear-door boarding on buses, block the two seats behind bus operators, stop accepting cash payments and cease issuing paper transfers to bus riders. The TTC has yet to act despite our numerous demands.
We have shared our concerns about this carpooling policy with TTC management. We will continue to oppose it while standing up for our members’ rights.
In Solidarity,
Carlos Santos
President, ATU Local 113