[URBAN NOTE] "Hudak wants to order Toronto to build subways, not streetcars"

[rfmcdonald]

This is interesting news. When Rob Ford was elected in late 2010, the expectation was that he as mayor of Toronto would lead a general revival of the right wing across Ontario, boosting Tim Hudak's Conservative Party in the process. This didn't happen: the Liberals still have a plurality of seats, a near-majority even, and the Conservatives remain in opposition.

Hudak was today willing to run the risk of offending Torontonians regardless of party stripe by demanding that the Ontario provincial legislature override Toronto city council. I wonder: is he desperate? It's certainly not surprising that Premier McGuinty, he of the Liberals, is willing to let city council override the desires of the man once thought to be one of the Conservatives' major assets.

Ontario is providing all the funding so the province should order the city of Toronto to build subways, even if city council votes for light rail transit instead, Opposition Leader Tim Hudak said Tuesday.

Just hours after Mayor Rob Ford's push for subways was dealt a major setback by councillors who replaced the board at the Toronto Transit Commission, the Progressive Conservatives came out swinging on Mr. Ford's behalf.

The subway debate at city council has deteriorated into a war of personalities, and the province needs to step in and take control of the $8.4-billion transit plan along Eglinton Avenue, said Mr. Hudak.

“The province should be investing in subways, building underground, not ripping up more city streets and taking away lanes permanently to build glorified streetcars,” Mr. Hudak told reporters.

“We know it's the right thing to do.”

The Tories strongly feel the billions in provincial funding gives the province the right to determine Toronto's transit future, even if the elected council objects, Mr. Hudak added.

“This is provincial dollars, $8.4 billion from the provincial treasury, not from the city treasury, therefore the province has to have a say in it,” he said.

[. . .]

During question period, Premier Dalton McGuinty noted Mr. Hudak was a member of the Progressive Conservative government in 1995 that moved to end construction of an Eglinton subway line started by the NDP.

“There was a time when he wanted to bury subways and now he wants to give life to subways, so it's hard to keep up with where they stand,” Mr. McGuinty told the legislature.

“Our shared responsibility at all times is to respect the expressed will of our municipal councils.”

The premier said the province's funding agreement with Mr. Ford required him to get council approval for any transit plan, and lashed out at Mr. Hudak's apparent willingness to overrule the vote of an elected council.

“What other considered positions of municipalities across Ontario is he prepared to disregard and substitute his own personal discretion,” Mr. McGuinty said.