FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – April 9th, 2026
ATU CANADA AND FIVE GTHA LOCALS CALL ON PROVINCE TO HALT CROSS-BOUNDARY TRANSIT INTEGRATION
Joint letter to Minister Sarkaria warns Ontario’s approach is fragmenting transit by design
TORONTO – ATU Canada and five Amalgamated Transit Union locals representing GTHA transit workers today sent a joint letter to Ontario Minister of Transportation Prabmeet Sarkaria calling on the Province to halt further cross-boundary transit integration until enforceable protections for workers, riders, and public transit are in place. The letter is signed by ATU Canada President John Di Nino and the presidents of Local 113 (TTC), Local 1587 (GO Transit/Metrolinx), Local 1572 (MiWay), Local 1573 (Brampton Transit), and Local 107 (Hamilton Street Railway).
“Transit workers are the ones who keep this region moving every single day, and ATU must have a seat at the table whenever decisions are being made that affect our workforce,” said ATU Canada President John Di Nino. “The Province cannot continue to push through cross-boundary changes, fare programs, and integration mandates without consulting the workers who deliver the service or the unions that represent them. If Ontario is serious about building a regional transit system that works, it starts with respecting the people who run it.”
The letter raises urgent concerns about Bill 98, the Building Homes and Improving Transportation Infrastructure Act, 2026, currently in second reading at Queen’s Park. Schedule 4 of the bill, the Fare Alignment and Seamless Transit Act, 2026, would hand the Minister of Transportation sweeping powers to set fare structures across Ontario, mandate participation in a unified fare payment system, prescribe geographic zones for fare revenue apportionment between transit agencies, and designate priority routes with provincially set service standards. Combined with the Getting Ontario Moving Act and the Building Transit Faster Act, Bill 98 represents an unprecedented provincial takeover of municipal transit, with no enforceable protections for service levels, fare revenue, or worker rights. TTC staff have identified 24 cross-boundary corridors covering 50 routes that could be affected, creating fare barriers within Toronto for the first time in over a century. In the 905, agencies like MiWay are already losing riders and revenue under One Fare, with no corresponding provincial investment to maintain service or protect jobs.”
ATU Local 113 President Marvin Alfred had this to say “ATU Local 113 is defending the TTC’s integrated single-fare system and warning against dismantling the network for contracting out. The residents of Toronto deserve direct accountability and autonomy for their public transit service.”
“Under One Fare, MiWay is losing riders and revenue with no provincial investment to make up the gap. If the Province doesn’t fully fund the Hazel McCallion Line, Mississauga will be forced to pull resources from MiWay, our local service will suffer, and riders will be left behind. Any plan for regional transit must include the workers who deliver it.” said ATU Canada Vice President and ATU Local 1572 President Jack Jackson.
The joint letter sets out eight demands, including halting further service changes pending genuine consultation, restoring the cancelled TTC-GO co-fare, enforceable service level agreements, fare revenue transparency, a commitment that integration will not lead to contracting out, stable provincial operating funding, full provincial funding of the Hazel McCallion Line, and formal stakeholder consultation. The letter has been copied to Premier Ford, the mayors of Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton, and Hamilton, the TTC Board Chair, Metrolinx CEO Michael Lindsay, ATU International, the CLC, and the OFL.