A brewing Toronto council battle is bigger than bike lanes or the remake of a stretch of north Yonge St., says the local councillor.

“There’s really a groundswell of support for this from many areas of the city,” John Filion (Ward 23, Willowdale) said of the “Transform Yonge” plan, recommended by city staff but rejected by public works committee, to widen sidewalks and install protected bike lanes between Sheppard and Finch Aves.

“It’s not just people in Willowdale who want this now. It really has become an issue of what kind of future we want for the city. If council turns it down, I absolutely think it will be a factor in the (October municipal) election, in that citizens who weren’t planning to be active in their wards will want a council that’s interested in city building.”

Filion, residents’ groups in his ward and transportation staff all say a , with the Yonge bike lanes, extra-wide sidewalks, better pedestrian crossings, and a landscaped centre median, best meets the city’s target of making the condo-lined stretch more safe and lively for pedestrians.

Mayor John Tory, however, doesn’t support the required removal of two lanes of vehicle traffic from the three-kilometre stretch of Yonge, citing fears of increased gridlock for commuters — most of whom live outside Toronto. A rival, costlier plan would instead put the bike lanes on nearby Beecroft Rd. and widen sidewalks somewhat, although three sections would remain narrower than the city standard for that kind of street.

The Beecroft bike proposal from Councillor David Shiner, whose Ward 24 is north of Filion’s, could add $20 million to the project cost. Shiner says the city, however, can reduce the premium to $9 million by replacing protected bike lanes in three areas with sharrows — chevron road markings that remind motorists to share the road with cyclists.

“You provide a full cycle lane from south of Sheppard all the way up to Steeles Ave.,” said Shiner Tuesday as he presented his motion to public works members, dismissing arguments from several deputants that making two of the lanes for bikes is safer for crossing pedestrians.

“A bicycle lane is still a lane, and it’s just as dangerous if not more so for pedestrians,” said Shiner, noting that the Yonge St. plan would also put northbound cyclists into a bus lane at Finch Ave.

Public works voted for Shiner’s freshly unveiled plan, rejecting Filion’s years-in-the-making proposal. Councillors Chin Lee (Ward 41 Scarborough-Rouge River), Stephen Holyday (Ward 3 Etobicoke Centre) and Christin Carmichael Greb (Ward 16 Eglinton Lawrence) voted for Shiner’s plan, with only Anthony Perruzza (Ward 8 York West) against. Committee chair Jaye Robinson (Ward 25 Don Valley West) was absent for the vote.

“I understand the local belief and needs and wants about how they see Yonge St. but I also have to think about it from a network perspective,” Holyday told colleagues. “It's extremely important to get people moving through this city.”

Council will have final say at its March meeting. Filion expects the vote to be close, even though concerns are rising about pedestrian and cyclist safety. Members of Friends and Families for Safe Streets, including widowed spouses, held a vigil in his ward calling for bike lanes on Yonge St.

“It really brought home to me how much of a problem we do have with pedestrian and cycling safety and we have to take every opportunity to do something about it and we have the opportunity to do it here with Transform Yonge,” he said.

Jared Kolb, executive director of Cycle Toronto advocacy group, said he’s hopeful Tory will change his mind before the March 26 meeting.

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“This is a referendum on the state of city building in Toronto and we’re calling on Mayor Tory to change his mind on this, to be in lockstep for the vision he’s had for Bloor St., King St. and to match that with a vision for North York,” Kolb said.

With files from David Nickle, toronto.com