The provincial government says it could table legislation to take ownership of Toronto’s subway system early next year, and is pledging to extend the city’s transit lines further outside its borders into suburban municipalities.

And while the Progressive Conservatives have publicly spoken only of uploading the subway network to the province, a confidential ministry of transportation document obtained by the Star indicates the government is considering a takeover of “other strategic transit/transportation assets in the City of Toronto.”

At a speech at the Toronto Region Board of Trade on Wednesday, Transportation Minister Jeff Yurek asserted that the province has greater financing and decision-making powers than the city, and is better placed to build new lines quickly and efficiently.

In what was his first substantial speech in the role, Yurek, who was appointed transportation minister in a cabinet shuffle two weeks ago, repeatedly emphasized his government’s position that the TTC subway should be considered a regional service rather than merely a municipal one, and that transit travel across city boundaries should be “seamless.”

“The TTC subway network is a critical service, not only to Torontonians but to all Ontarians,” said Yurek, who is MPP for Elgin-Middlesex-London.

“When the uploading is completed, Ontario will have greater control to implement vital regional transit policy objectives, including fare integration and improved connectivity between transit systems.”

He said once ownership of the subway network was in the province’s hands, “we will be able to push the subway further into York, Peel and the Durham regions.”

The statement mirrored a promise Premier Doug Ford made in June, widely criticized as impractical, to construct a subway line to the city of Pickering in Durham, where the population density falls far below levels that would conventionally justify subway service.

Yurek made no mention of completing the relief line, the subway project that the TTC has said is critical to easing chronic overcrowding on the existing network. Extending the subway further into the suburbs would likely only add passengers to existing lines. The first phase of the relief line would cost at least $6.8 billion.

Yurek’s comments reignited concerns at city hall that the province will use the upload to prioritize building transit projects in the GTA suburbs, where the Conservatives have strong political support, at the expense of improving the overburdened network within Toronto’s borders.

“They’ve lost their minds,” said Councillor Gord Perks (Ward 14, Parkdale-High Park).

“Transit money is scarce and it should be spent in a way that gets the most riders for the fewest dollars. Extending the subway into the suburban areas gets the fewest riders for the most dollars.”

Perks argued that if the province wants to improve transit in municipalities surrounding Toronto it should invest in the provincial GO Transit network that already serves those areas.

A spokesperson for Mayor John Tory said he has “stated clearly that it would be irresponsible” to extend Line 1 (Yonge-University-Spadina) into York Region without first completing the relief line.

“Premier Ford has also indicated his support for the relief line as a priority project,” Don Peat said.

Peat added that Tory “has been clear that any decision about our subway system needs to be in the best interests of Toronto, including transit riders and employees, and that Toronto must be completely involved and consulted as Premier Ford previously indicated would be the case.”

Peat didn’t say whether the mayor’s office has secured any guarantee that the province won’t act unilaterally if the city doesn’t agree to its terms.

NDP transportation critic Jessica Bell said it is “deeply disturbing” that Yurek didn’t emphasize the relief line in his speech.

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“I fear Toronto transit riders will simply not be able to board trains because of overcrowding on the Yonge Line subway if Ford builds to Vaughan before the relief line is built,” she said.

Ministry spokesperson Bob Nichols said the government expects its relationship with the city to be “collaborative, in joint pursuit of the benefits under the upload.” He listed the relief line as one of the “key projects” the province intends to build, but wouldn’t commit the province to completing it before extending the subway further into the suburbs.

The Conservatives appear to be moving swiftly to complete the upload.

In August, the ministry of transportation announced the appointment of a special adviser on the proposal. Yurek said Wednesday the cabinet expects to receive an initial report from the adviser later this month, and the government is contemplating “implementation through legislation or regulation in early 2019.”

The Conservatives are also changing legislation to give the government more direct control over Metrolinx, the regional transit agency for the GTHA that was set up in 2006 as an arms-length organization of the province.

Proposed changes to the Metrolinx Act that were released last week would give the transportation minister final approval of the agency’s multibillion-dollar regional transportation plan, and allow the minister to select a representative to participate in Metrolinx board meetings.

According to a Nov. 15 confidential ministry of transportation document about the proposed changes that was obtained by the Star, the amendments are intended to clarify “that the board’s management of the business and affairs of Metrolinx is subject to the minister’s direction.”

The amendments come a little more than a year after the Star revealed former Liberal transportation minister Steven Del Duca interfered in Metrolinx’s planning process in 2016 in order to secure the approval of a new $100-million GO Transit station in his riding. The revelations sparked concerns about political meddling in transit plans.

In a section titled “current provincial activity,” the confidential ministry document states that the government has “committed to uploading” the TTC subway network “and other strategic transit/transportation assets in the City of Toronto.”

The Conservatives have repeatedly said publicly their only interest is in taking ownership of the subway network, and plan to leave the day-to-day operations of the network to the TTC.

Asked what other strategic transportation assets of Toronto’s the province could take ownership of, Nichols said “at this point, our focus is on developing a plan to upload the TTC subway system to the province.”

The government hasn’t released the terms of reference for the special adviser. It’s not clear if his mandate includes making recommendations about the potential upload of other aspects of the network.

Ben Spurr is a Toronto-based reporter covering transportation. Reach him by email at bspurr@thestar.ca or follow him on Twitter: @BenSpurr

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