A TTC driver has been reinstated after he was suspended for leaving his streetcar earlier this week to chase down a man who allegedly assaulted a female passenger.

TTC union leader Bob Kinnear said Friday said the transit commission has reversed its decision to suspend Dino Oroc after the altercation on a busy 501 streetcar Wednesday evening.

Oroc said he stopped the streetcar near the corner of Queen and John Streets after a "hysterical" female passenger said a man had assaulted her.

When the driver went to investigate the incident, the suspect exited the vehicle and fled onto the street. The woman -- who Oroc said was in the process of calling 911 -- followed.

Oroc made a split-second decision to also give chase, but lost the suspect a short time later.

"Somebody's security was at stake here and I thought: okay, I know what the rules are and I'll deal with them after,” Oroc told reporters Friday, just before meeting with TTC officials. "I thought someone's in need and I just jumped out."

While another passenger had suggested it was a sexual assault, Toronto Police said it is merely being investigated as an "incident."

TTC spokesperson Brad Ross had previously said drivers are not to abandon their streetcars under any circumstances, and the pursuit of suspects should be left up to police -- not TTC employees.

"I was being a good Samaritan," said Oroc. "I think anyone with a reasonable mind would have done the same thing."

With files from The Canadian Press