The TTC is denying an Australian news report that CEO Andy Byford is set to leave Toronto to take the helm of Queensland Rail.

Citing anonymous sources, the Brisbane Times reported that Byford's appointment to the Queensland transit agency was expected to be announced in the state parliament this week.

TTC spokesperson Brad Ross said the report is not accurate.

“No, he does not plan to leave TTC for Queensland Rail,” Ross wrote in an email Monday. “He was approached by them, but declined.”

At a Monday morning news conference on the TTC budget, Mayor John Tory said he had looked into the report and had been assured Byford wasn't joining the Australian agency.

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“I don't know whether that report came from the Beaverton report or from the Onion,” he said, referencing two satirical news sites.

“I'm informed, because we checked, that that has no foundation in fact whatsoever and he is continuing I'm sure as we speak to do a great job for the TTC and transit riders and hopefully will continue to do so for a long time to come.”

Queensland Rail is a much smaller organization than the TTC, and sources at the Toronto transit agency say Byford would be unlikely to move to an organization of that size. It has an annual ridership of just over 50 million, compared to about 540 million for the TTC.

Although the Queensland report appears to be unfounded, there is speculation about Byford's future as the head of Canada's largest transit agency.

He joined the TTC in 2011 in the role of chief operating officer and took over as CEO in March of the following year.

This is the final year of the five-year modernization plan that he launched in 2012 and he has not said publicly whether he plans to stay on past its completion. He is a permanent employee of the TTC and has no fixed-term contract.

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Byford hails from Plymouth, England but has worked in Australia before. Between 2009 and 2011, he served as the COO of Sydney's RailCorp.

Prior to that, he was a general manager with Transport for London.