An employee was fired for failing to follow protocol after the doors of a subway suffered a mechanical glitch and remained open while the train moved.
At a TTC board meeting at city hall Tuesday, TTC staff said the door stayed open because of the glitch but there were things the employee should have done as a result.
TTC staff said in a case like this, an alarm should have been sounded, a barricade around the door should have been put into in place and passengers should have been safely taken off the train if it was deemed unsafe.
The head of the TTC’s union Bob Kinnear confirmed the firing but said he wants to listen back to an audio transcript from the ride to hear what TTC control was telling the crew to do. Kinnear believes the operator might have been under pressure to keep trains moving and left the station prematurely.
The union also said the guard does have specific procedures to follow, but could have been instructed otherwise by TTC control.
In response to Kinnear's comments, TTC spokesperson Brad Ross said the radio communications were reviewed and the guard was not given any directive outside normal procedure.
TTC CEO Andy Byford would not comment on the firing, but said it would be dealt with as a serious issue.
The incident happened on Line 2 at around 6 p.m. on May 27 and was captured in a video sent to CTV Toronto by a viewer.
“At Broadview, the train was taken out of service because of those door problems,” Ross said earlier this week. He said an investigation had been launched to determine exactly what happened.
It is expected to conclude later this week.
“This is a very serious matter. Safety features are designed so that if a door opens while the train is moving, emergency brakes kick in. Doors can be isolated that are malfunctioning, but we barricade them in those instances,” Ross said.
