Negotiations between members of Local 113 of Amalgamated Transit Union and Veolia Transportation Inc. have broken down. As a result, a VIVA service disruption could occur as early as 12:01am on Monday, Sept. 22.
If there is a strike, there will be no VIVA buses. This will impact the VIVA Blue, VIVA Pink, VIVA Green, VIVA Orange and VIVA Purple routes. VIVA is part of York Region’s transit service, but all York Region Transit (YRT), Toronto Transit Commission (TTC), GO Transit and Brampton Transit services operating in York Region will continue to run.
Members of the University community who use the VIVA service should seek alternative means of commuting to York University. These include carpooling, car sharing, cycling, driving, alternative transit (i.e. YRT, GO, Brampton Transit, TTC) or taxis. York University has bike racks, and bike cages and access will be provided to community members who need to store their bikes on campus.
York University in cooperation with Smart Commute – North Toronto, Vaughan, offers Carpool Zone, a ride-matching program. For more information and for a quick and easy tutorial on how to register, visit the Carpool Zone Web site. Carpool Zone allows York community members to select rideshare partners based on start and finish times, home locations and driver/passenger preferences. It also allows commuters to find rideshare partners along their route, for example at Provincial Carpool Parking Lots. Users can create multiple journeys to suit their needs.
York University’s Transportation Services and Smart Commute personnel will be able to assist community members by phone or e-mail with assistance on ride-matching and liaising with Smart Commute – North Toronto, Vaughan on the ride-matching program.
If a strike does take place, York Region personnel will be present at major terminal locations to provide customers with information pertaining to the strike and to assist them in planning alternative routes to their destination.
For more information in the event of a disruption to VIVA, visit the York Region Transit Web site or check local news media and their Web sites for updates. In the event of a strike, all community members should plan their trip ahead of time and give themselves additional time to get to their destination as there will be a lot of congestion on the roads.