The Toronto Transit Commission would have to pay about $3.3 million more to buy new subway tunnel boring machines rather than refurbish its used ones, says chief executive Andy Byford.

After meeting with Mayor Rob Ford, Byford told reporters that new machines would also be under warranty, unlike the four old ones that have just finished tunnelling for the $2.6-billion York University subway extension.

Due to technological advances, new units would be more productive, which Byford said has been factored into the financial analysis that it would cost an extra $3.3 million to go with new units. That report is to be discussed by the commission Wednesday.

Ford said Tuesday he wanted to keep the four-year-old units for potential future work on tunnelling subways along Finch and Sheppard Aves. and the downtown relief line — projects that have not yet been funded.

“I think it’s important that we keep the boring machines because we have to get the Sheppard and Finch and DRL built; that’s the bottom line,” Ford told reporters.

Byford said he tried to put the mayor’s mind at ease by stressing that future tunnelling work is years away, leaving plenty of time to purchase new machines.

Work on the Scarborough subway to replace the existing SRT line won’t begin until 2018, he said.

If subways were approved on Finch, and Sheppard and the relief line, work on them would follow, Byford noted.

“If the subway building program is to be expanded, it would have to go through city council, funding would have to be found, an environmental assessment would have to be done, designs would have to be drawn up,” he said.

“All of those items take time, so that again would be some way off.”

Ford wasn’t sold on the argument for buying new tunneling machines. While the old ones would have to be refurbished, he noted that they would still be cheaper — saving $3.3 million in the TTC’s analysis.

“We’re going to move ahead in a positive direction and that is building subways,” the mayor said in a media scrum outside his office. “And we’re going to keep these tunnelling machines.”

City council will decide whether to approve future subway projects, which Ford says people want.

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“Subways is a huge, huge issue with people,” the mayor said. “Some people like LRTs, some people like subways. The feedback I’m getting, more people like subways than they do LRTs. And that’s up for the people to decide on Oct. 27.”

The tunnelling machines cost $51.7 million when purchased in 2009. The TTC hopes to get $15.5 million for them. An offer of $9.2 million fell through so there is currently no buyer for the equipment.