Ottawa's transit strike has dealt an especially harsh blow to the owners of four Transitway station convenience stores, who have been completely cut off from their workplace and customers as their bills continue to mount.

"That's our sole source of income, that's our livelihood. Nobody else but us has actually been wiped out," said Joseph Kiros, whose convenience store in Lincoln Fields station has been closed since the start of the strike, which was in its 45th day Friday.

Peter Asfaha, who owns the store at Blair station, said his family also relies solely on the income from his in-station business.

"We cannot survive this way," said Asfaha, who has a five-year-old son to support.

When buses are running, the Transitway convenience stores are busy places that see a steady stream of transit users and employees. They supply bus drivers with coffee, newspapers and snacks and schoolchildren with sandwiches, drinks and breakfast items.

About 2,300 transit drivers, dispatchers and maintenance workers walked off the job on Dec. 10. Ever since, the transit stations along the Transitway have been locked, barring access to the stores by even their owners.

Bills keep coming

"Even if we were to open, there wouldn't be anybody really there," said Kiros, who runs the Lincoln Fields store with his uncle. Meanwhile, store bills keep coming in.

His mother first opened the store, the first one in any transit station in Ottawa, 10 years ago. She died last year and Kiros said he feels responsible for keeping the family business alive.

He said the city has provided no support so far.

"We haven't been given any instructions. We just listen to the radio, or we go outside and look if there's any buses, praying for buses every day."

The store owners said they aren't taking sides in the conflict but are asking both the city and the transit union to reach an agreement as soon as possible.

In the meantime, they are working odd jobs to make ends meet, but don't know how much longer they can survive.

When the dispute hits the two-month mark, Kiros said, "I think I'm going to be freaking out… like you don't see any light, you just feel like it's going to keep going and going and nobody cares about us."

No talks have been held between the City of Ottawa and the striking Amalgamated Transit Union Local 279 since Dec. 23.

On Jan. 8, transit union members voted 75 per cent against the city's latest offer, which was issued just before the most recent talks broke off. Since then, both sides have suggested limited arbitration, but have been unable to agree on the conditions.