What is your take on the TTC situation??

[biog]

Let's be realistic

I interact with a fair number of TTC drivers while they are on the job. As with all industries you get a mix. Some are total asses that abuse the system, some are just 'regular guys' doing their jobs to make a living and some truely are the type who would give the shirt off their backs if they thought it would help you. You can't judge an entire group like that through the actions of one person. They just have a highly visible job, so the behaviour (good or bad) is magnified.

I'm sure those of you out there that work in larger companies can think of a couple of people who are "saints" and a couple of people who are tools in your office. But I'm sure you wouldn't paint the whole company with the same brush because of those people.

 

[Brookstone]

Personally, when i talk about any bad instances i'm not talking about everyone that is connected to it, in this case, the TTC. I'm only speaking of bad times that i've seen and experienced. I'm sure the others are as well. But just like every other thing in life, you just dont hear enough of it. Its the bad stuff that sticks in ppls mind and that brings attention.

 

[spiff]

My 2 cents...

Public transportation in a city the size of Toronto should be free.

Federal and provincial governments need to step up and fund the TTC 100%

That's what I think....

 

[Hard Idle]

tboy[/B]]
IMHO if you live more than 20 kms from work you should be forced to relocate nearer to your employer. This IMHO is the number one cause of gridlock, excessive air pollution, and the current state of our city.
QUOTE]

I completely agree that Toronto is not well suited to public transit.

However, you idea about forcing people to relocat is outrageous. Not every neighbourhood is suitable for all types of households.

Some people live in certain places because they look after a sick or elderly realtive. What are they supposed to do if they have to change their job, or if their emplyer decides to move 25KM away?

What do you? Sell to the lowest bidder? Write off a few months rent? Send your kids to new school 2 weeks before exams?

Way to simplistic.

 

[Hard Idle]

I don't see what the big emergency is. Thousands of people face the same dangers on the job as TTC operators. Why are they any more special than clerks at doughnut shops or video stores?

What about the people who have to wait 30 minutes or a night bus on a street corner with thugs or drug addicts? They have just as much a right to be on edge as the TTC driver.

If they want the same legal protection as a police officer, then they should be subjected to the same screening, testing and training proceedures as police, and they should be expected to risk their lives to protect civillians.

Half of these guys can't be bothered to answer simple questions about routes and schedules, let alone protect people. Just this month, two women who work with me had stories of harassment & threats on the TTC and the operator wouldn't do anything, not even radio for help.

If they want camera's that's fine, as long as the footage is digitally recorded and stored so that customers can also use it to prove complaints of rudeness, descrimination and verbal abuse which TTC drivers get away with all the time.

 

[emvee]

What ever happened to .. If you don't like your job, quit and fins a new one?

Janitors don't want to work the night shift? Pickup the god damned help wanted classifieds!!

 

[tboy]

For all the ppl who say my "live closer to work" is way off base, I wonder then why the Canadian Government gives you a tax credit if you MOVE closer to work?

As for the 150K for a 600 sq ft condo, dude, where can you buy a condo for 150K?

I guess a lot of you don't remember the 70's and 80's when the downtown core was becoming a wasteland of empty office buildings because so many were moving out to the 'burbs/north york. At one point building management companies were GIVING away years of rent just to keep companies downtown. I worked for a big corporation at the time and do you know WHY they stayed downtown? FOR THE FRIGGEN ADDRESS! They did a study and found that a) 75% of the employees favoured a move to North York b) they would save x millions of dollars in taxes etc. c) they could have purchased the land and erected a 10 story office building for what they paid in rent over 5 yrs. After the 5 yrs, they'd be rent/cost free.

Sorry folks if you think the concept is simplistic. But the reality of the situation is that something like this HAS to happen or else our city is doomed. How else can you alleviate the gridlock that currently occurs everyday? The TTC cannot handle an increase in 20% of ridership without a large influx of money. There isn't anymore room to put more roads into the core. There isn't anymore room to put parking spaces, so either the people move out or the companies do.

BTW anyone know the company called Owens Corning? Well, to alleviate their office congeston, and the associated costs they moved 40% of their staff to home office situations. The entire sales force for one. Now all these people don't have to travel at peak times. They have to walk about 20 feet to their office.

Anyway, if you all think that allowing people to work as far away from their work as they like is just the way it is, remember that the next time you're sitting in a traffic jam sucking in diesel/gasoline exhaust or crammed assholes to elbows in a subway car. And take a good look around: half the people just don't need to be there!

 

[K Douglas]

The way the City of Toronto is going there won't be any jobs there in 10 yrs to go to as all business will have fled for the suburbs. Then all those 905'ers won't have to worry about taking the TTC or driving on shitty roads to get to work.

 

[Ledoc]

These rude drivers should get laid or see some sp's mpa's... maybe they will have the smile on their face then

 

[Coach]

If the union doesn't like the working conditions, negotiate when its time. Right now they have a contract, obey it!The company has the right to alter shifts, if the employees don't like it.....quit. There are many who would take the jobs in a heartbeat. There should be serious repercussions for the union heads for the wildcat strike, as for the employees, they are merely acting like sheep. Fire the bastards. Unfortunately David Miller will ask the union for a group hug and sing kumbya.
Everyone has a choice, they can quit if they don't like their job. Inexcusable what happened today.

 

[The Bandit]

Two words....Union bullshit!

It's funny how Bob Kinnear says he didn't tell his member to go out on a wildcat strike...meanwhile his members say they listen to their leader Bob Kinnear. You figure it out.

I was a member of Teamsters for 12 and a half years, the only thing a union is good for is to get a raise. Otherwise they only exist for people who are shit-disturbers who don't want to work. If you do you work properly, you don't need a union! Most union dues work out to about 2 hours wages a month, to pay those bumbs who call themselves leaders.

 

[Berlin]

Kudos to the folks who were giving free rides to fellow commuters this morning. Thumbs up.

 

[xdog]

Hey Fab...

what would you do if a customer said that he forgot his wallet ar home? Would you allow him to pay later in the week? Just to let you know, I work for the TTC. I didn't know about the strike until this morning. I don't look at the farebox because if I enforce the rules, I get abused by assholes. Not worth it. I also don't get supported my management. That is the big problem woth job satisfaction at the TTC. As for firing employees when they screw up, it happens all the time. I have been relieved of duty on more than 1 occasion. after filing grievance I have been re-hired because I had been wrongfully dismissed.
It's also very easy to find pay phones in Toronto. I'm sure that the school your daughter attends has a phone. Try looking at the situation from both sides. Also, just because someone is 14 does not entitle them to a student fare.
By the way, if you went to the Bay to purchase a TV, but forgot to bring your Bay card; would you tell the cashier not to worry because you have one at home.

Before criticizing someone, walk in their shoes for a day.

As for people who want drivers to use their discretion, our union has asked the TTC to write out our job description and what it entails. Are we supposed to enfore fares or not? What if the driver lets somebody on without paying and someone who previously paid is now upset with the driver because he now feels that he shouldn't have to pay. What if an Indian person gets on and pays and then sees a Japanese person getting on for free? will the driver be charged with racism? It wouldn't be the first time?
As for contract negotiations, the TTC said that nobody would be moved to nights in the last contract. Personally, I have no problem if they move cleaners to night shift. It makes economical sense.
It's easy to say quit your job if you don't like it. I like my job most of the time. I meet a lot of nice people. Like any other company, there will be bad apples.
You wouldn't believe the shit we put up with.

I would love if the TTC was made an essential service.
X

 

[frankcastle]

As for the 150K for a 600 sq ft condo, dude, where can you buy a condo for 150K?

I sold mine for that price and others in the same building were going for the same price. That was last year. Okay to be exact the closing price was about $152 Kish. This price was based on what condos had been selling for in that area for the last two years and there were a lot of condos that changed hands in that time (most closed between 145 to 155 K). But to be fair the place was actually about 590 sq ft.

And trust me when I say the location was about as central as you could get (eaton's centre, chinatown, kensington market, st lawrence market, club district all within 20 mins or less walking, not to mention subway and streetcar access within less than 5 min walk).

The only catch is you have to be willing to buy into an older building mind you it still had a pool and gym.

 

[dragondeath]

My 2 cents...

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Public transportation in a city the size of Toronto should be free.

Federal and provincial governments need to step up and fund the TTC 100%

That's what I think....

Agree

 

[Steve-A]

I don't know if free is possible - but the government ought to keep the cost very affordable to encourage people to us public transportation!

 

[tboy]

I sold mine for that price and others in the same building were going for the same price. That was last year. Okay to be exact the closing price was about $152 Kish. This price was based on what condos had been selling for in that area for the last two years and there were a lot of condos that changed hands in that time (most closed between 145 to 155 K). But to be fair the place was actually about 590 sq ft.

And trust me when I say the location was about as central as you could get (eaton's centre, chinatown, kensington market, st lawrence market, club district all within 20 mins or less walking, not to mention subway and streetcar access within less than 5 min walk).

The only catch is you have to be willing to buy into an older building mind you it still had a pool and gym.

I was wondering what the catch was....no matter how old the building is that still seems like a pretty good deal for a unit right downtown.

But back to the topic at hand, reading today's sun the strike wasn't about driver safety at all, it was about 8 janitors being shifted to working nights....and the fact that even though they were told to report in the evening, they reported for work at their regular shift and were summarily dismissed. (fair in my eyes, if you don't want to accept the change in your shift, you can't just make your own rules)

Sounds to me like there might be some legal action against the union for what was an illegal strike.

As for making public transit free, sorry dude, we don't live in a communist country. Here's we have to pay for what services or goods we use. Already the public transit system costs the various governments millions and there is no way they can foot the entire bill. As stated, if it were to go free, we'd all see an increase in our property taxes of about $1000.00 each. Sorry but I don't see how I should be paying for some poor schmuck who didn't get an education, and has a low paying job, to ride for free...

Anyhow, there will be some tough decisions to be made in the future as to how to manage the congestion of people and vehicles constantly moving throughout southern Ontario (and other cities). I for one find it simply ludicrous that we have trucks leaving toronto with a load of lumber to points north and trucks leaving points north full of lumber to places in toronto. Stuff like this has to stop. I use this as a comparison to a factory worker living in scarberia travelling to etobicoke and a factory worker in etobicoke travelling to scarberia to work there.

 

[burlboy]

My 2 cents...

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Public transportation in a city the size of Toronto should be free.

Federal and provincial governments need to step up and fund the TTC 100%

That's what I think....

Agree

The tax payer pays for those so called free things, in other words you. I think it is very important that people know the actual worth of the services provided Otherwise we have unrealistic expectations about services provided. I think the riders should cover the full expense of the daily ride costs. Toronto is pretty good it can cover about 80% of the daily cost compared to Burlington where a bus ride costs the city twice as much ($6) so the city is heavily subsidizing empty buses plugging up and down the road. I would only allow government aid for equipment upgrade and replacement but run the daily operations on a break even basis. The other draw back to free bussing is the buses would become mobile homeless shelters and we don't need that.

 

[Fabulous]

you are comparing apples to oranges

It's also very easy to find pay phones in Toronto. I'm sure that the school your daughter attends has a phone. Try looking at the situation from both sides. Also, just because someone is 14 does not entitle them to a student fare.
By the way, if you went to the Bay to purchase a TV, but forgot to bring your Bay card; would you tell the cashier not to worry because you have one at home.
X

Going to school, getting an education is a NEED.
Shopping for something at the Bay is a WANT.

I am not sure about this but I thought it was MANDATORY for our children to go to school? My kid is fullfiling her duties by attending school everyday, so she can become a good TAX PAYER in the future, and so tboy won't have to worry about "paying for some poor schmuck who didn't get an education, and has a low paying job, to ride for free..."

I can assure you that harassing our youth on the ttc (PUBLIC TRANSPORT) or trying to kick them off for such a minor infraction as "not presenting a student card", especially when they are visibly young, can only lead to something bad.

IF as a RESULT of the ttc driver kicking my daughter off the streetcar, she got off in CLEAR EMOTIONAL DISTRESS, KNOWING SHE HAS NO WAY TO GET HOME, all her friends are now gone off in differnt directions, she is facing having to look for a phone, or beg a STRANGER, and the likes of child preditor comes along, or she gets hit by a car when stepping off, who gains what by this??? Unfortunatelly this is reality in our times and something I would rather not have happen to my child or yours. It would be in the ttc's best interest to err on the side of caution, instead of harming our youth, that are trying to become good citizens.

BTW, IMO, the Bay provides some of the best customer service I've experienced as a consumer, maybe you guys should find out what their secret is.

 

[Southern_Knight]

I am not sure about this but I thought it was MANDATORY for our children to go to school?

And how is anyone supposed to know that this or any child is indeed 14 and attending school? They could be 17 or 18 based on looks alone. The card prevents guesswork. I know of people in their late teens who can pass for pre-pubescent at need. And many early teens can get by as being of legal drinking age.

I can assure you that harassing our youth on the ttc (PUBLIC TRANSPORT) or trying to kick them off for such a minor infraction as "not presenting a student card", especially when they are visibly young, can only lead to something bad.

Enforcing the rules is not harassment. Not paying proper fare or providing proper identification is not a minor infraction.

IF as a RESULT of the ttc driver kicking my daughter off the streetcar, she got off in CLEAR EMOTIONAL DISTRESS, KNOWING SHE HAS NO WAY TO GET HOME, all her friends are now gone off in differnt directions, she is facing having to look for a phone, or beg a STRANGER, and the likes of child preditor comes along, or she gets hit by a car when stepping off, who gains what by this??? Unfortunatelly this is reality in our times and something I would rather not have happen to my child or yours. It would be in the ttc's best interest to err on the side of caution, instead of harming our youth, that are trying to become good citizens.

Local merchants are one option that is low risk. Pay phones (no coin necessary to call the operator) are another. I know of children much younger than 14 who travel the TTC and are well-versed in options should they be stranded.