Category: The Current Situation

Here’s a video that does a pretty good job (and funny!) of summarizing what happened with Accordion City’s transit system and their strike. As an added bonus, it provides a breezy baedeker for Canadian and Toronto politics:

I give this video bonus points for its consistent message of “Nobody listens to the NDP” (and with good cause!).

[Found via blogTO.]

Accordion City is waking up this fine Saturday morning to…a transit strike!

For those of you not from here, here’s a quick recap of what’s been happening:

• The threat of a strike has been looming for the past little while. The union — Amalgamated Transit Union Local 113 — promised to give at least 48 hours’ notice before a strike in order to allow the public time to make arrangements for alternate means of transport.
• If the union and management didn’t come to an agreement by 4 p.m. last Sunday, April 20th, the workers would go on strike at 4 a.m. Monday, April 21st. The negotiations went into overtime, but they came to a tentative agreement that evening. There would be a vote on the agreement later in the week, but it seemed as though the union would accept the deal.
• Last night, the union voted against the settlement (a 65% “no” vote) and went on strike at midnight.

Friday is what PR people call “Take Out the Trash Day” — it’s a good day to make unpopular announcements, especially late in the day, because it’s when people don’t pay attention to the news. Many people were caught by surprise — on TV, they’re showing interviews of people who were stranded downtown last night. The unexpectedness of the strike, coupled with the union’s earlier promise of 48 hours’ notice, is not going to endear the union to the public.

Photo from Bridge and Tunnel Club. Click the photo to see it on its original page.

Even though a transit strike might not happen on Monday, if you live and work in Accordion City, you really should be making contingency plans. The Toronto Star published a Strike Survival Guide today featuring information on carpooling, where to park, where not to park, cycling, using GO Transit, getting a cab, going to the airport, highway driving, getting an ambulance, and service for the disabled.