A proposal to declare the TTC an essential service was thrown a lifeline yesterday when city council voted in favour of the item as being "urgent," reports say.
The next step will be a vote, to be held tonight, that will decide the fate of the proposal.
TTC Chair Adam Giambrone had earlier told CP24.com that it would be highly unlikely for the idea to get to this point.
Opponents of the proposal - including Giambrone, say declaring the TTC an essential service would drive up operating costs, and there would be no guarantee that TTC employees would not go on strike.
He cites examples from other cities, such as New York and Montreal, where transit has been declared and essential service yet operators still walked off the job.
"It can't prevent illegal strikes because, well, they're illegal," he says.
The TTC went on strike in April after union president Bob Kinnear verbally promised a 48-hour warning of such action. Transit riders were given about two hours notice before the two-day strike started, stranding thousands of people.
Contracts would also often be settled with an arbitrator, Giambrone adds, which usually winds up being more expensive than if contracts were negotiated.
The TTC is the country's largest public transit service providing service to 1.5 million people daily.
