NOTE: This article has been edited from a previous version.

Rumours have swirled for years about the province taking over the TTC, or possibly just the subway.

Mayor Rob Ford’s administration has floated the idea as a way of lifting the financial burden of transit off the city. But the province said Tuesday it has no interest in pursuing it — especially with a huge deficit and an election coming. (For more, see GT5.)

Turning transit over to the province has both pros and cons for Toronto taxpayers and transit riders, according to experts. A look at both sides:

What would riders lose?

• Service: Former mayor David Miller argued that taking control of the TTC out of the city’s hands could dilute service for Torontonians as the province tries to smooth out the inequities among those served by regional transit systems that have meandering routes, regular fare increases and sparse frequencies.

• Accountability: Giving the subways over to the province might not make much difference to riders, but when it comes to buses and streetcars, you could be giving the responsibility to a bureaucrat living in a different city with no accountability to the Toronto electorate, said public transit advocate Matthew Blackett, publisher of Spacing magazine.

“If you turn control over to someone who potentially doesn’t live here, doesn’t represent here, then you have people making decisions they’re not accountable for,” he said.

Uploading only subways to the province would be a mistake, said Ryerson professor emeritus Jim Mars. “Almost all buses and streetcars pass through subway stations, allowing an inexpensive, if occasionally slow, trip for any passenger throughout (the city of Toronto). To upload only the subways would put this system at risk,” he said.

What’s in it for Toronto?

Money: The province used to give the city money to operate the TTC, but that has dried up. This year, Toronto expects to provide a $429 million subsidy to bolster the farebox — $1 million less than in 2010.

“TTC has become a monster — an uncontrollable, very expensive monster who is looking to grow larger tentacles, and we can’t afford to feed that monster anymore,” said Councillor Giorgio Mammoliti. Letting the province run transit would free up the city to focus on “grassroots services,” he said.

More subways, less congestion: “It makes sense we look at a system that brings people in and out of the city in a fast, effective way and build new subways that would accommodate the GTA,” said Mammoliti.

Better maintenance and expansion: The TTC needs to be better maintained and to grow, said Patrice Dutil, assistant professor of politics and public administration at Ryerson University.

“There’s an area at Lawrence that’s been marked off for a decade for an elevator. We have little old ladies walking down 60 stairs. Why is that? It’s amazing how the business community puts up with King Station. It’s an abomination.”

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Presto: The TTC needs to be better integrated with regional transit, starting with implementing the Presto fare card, says chair Karen Stintz. Even Mississauga Mayor Hazel McCallion has repeated what provincial officials have quietly begun to admit: Without the TTC, Presto doesn’t work because most regional commuters take the TTC for part of the way.