Talking transit is one of Toronto’s favourite pastimes. But Saturday’s discussion was something of a landmark in the ongoing conversation.

The first in a week of official public consultations on two transit relief studies gathered about 150 residents, politicians and transit officials all bent on the pressing question of how to relieve crowding on the Yonge subway and squeeze more capacity out of the rest of the region’s transit network.

Metrolinx is studying a series of options to add capacity to the existing transportation system, including more GO service. At the same time, the city and TTC are looking at the possibilities for a new subway relief line that would help many riders bypass the TTC chokepoint at Yonge and Bloor.

“There’s no silver bullet to solving the issues of this region … it’s going to take more than one project to get there,” said Metrolinx vice-president Leslie Woo, who is in charge of the Yonge Relief Network Study.

The first time that the city, the TTC and Metrolinx have held integrated consultations shows that everyone is intent on a joint city-region solution, she said.

A relief subway running off the Danforth line into the core between Front and Dundas Streets is one part of the solution. It could eventually be extended to form a U from Eglinton through the downtown and up through High Park on the west end.

“If we don’t go sideways in the next two years, we’re not that far off the construction period,” Toronto chief planner Jennifer Keesmaat told the gathering at a downtown hotel.

Recommendations from a short-list of relief options, including station locations and engineering a cross of the Don Valley, are expected to go before council between next April and July. The subway design process would take two to three years after that, followed by an eight- to 10-year construction period, said Tim Laspa, Toronto’s director of transportation planning.

The relief subway, which is so far unfunded, would reduce southbound transfers at the Bloor-Yonge chokepoint by about 30 per cent and cut demand for the Yonge line by 12 per cent, according to the city and TTC.

“Building another subway is fine,” said retired business owner Mark Early. But there are things that can make getting around the city easier in the short term, including better snow clearing of sidewalks for pedestrians.

“The 504 King streetcar, from Broadview to the financial district is a relief. If they would give that traffic priority it could well improve things a bit. They could do it tomorrow for that matter,” he said.

Faster streetcar service, additional GO service, more stations, reduced fares for off-rush periods and better fare integration among regional transit systems, including the TTC, are among the ideas Metrolinx is considering.

This round of consultations runs through Saturday.

Suggestions by members of the public, who attended the consultation, were:

Run more buses downtown.

Expand bike sharing from High Park to Victoria Park.

Extend the subway from Kipling to Highway 427, perhaps running the trains on the surface.

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Use hydro corridors in Scarborough and North York as transitways.