Premier Kathleen Wynne and Mayor Rob Ford are on opposite sides of the tracks when it comes to public transit.

Wynne says there needs to be some kind of revenue stream if Toronto is to make up for all the lost years when nothing was done in the way of subways or light rail, while Ford says no to new taxes or things like road tolls.

“We need to create a revenue stream in order to build those projects in the future,” Wynne told reporters Wednesday at the site of the $2.4 billion extension to the Spadina subway where it tunnels under Highway 407 at Jane.

“In terms of the specific tool . . . that’s the conversation we need to have,” she said, adding that Metrolinx, responsible for planning transit across the GTA, is to bring forward an investment strategy.

Ford, also at the news conference to mark the next phase of the project, said under no circumstances would he raise taxes to boost transit “because I don’t think the people are ready for a tax yet.”

Wynne said Toronto has “lost years and that is why we have to continue to build.”

Visibly pleased, Ford told the news conference that “today marks a significant step in our progress to build subway extensions that will reduce gridlock, improve travel time and improve productivity for businesses.”

Ford has been a cheerleader for subway, turning his nose up at light rail transit, which is the preferred way of the future for the rest of council.

The TTC expansion, the first to cross municipal border, is to be completed by 2016.

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