Council has voted in favour of taking the next step on two future transit projects in Toronto.
They approved moving forward with planning and design work for the downtown relief line, which will connect Pape station to Osgoode and Queen stations by running under Carlaw Ave, and the Yonge subway extension into York region.
Staff have been asked to come back with further cost estimates and a timeline on the projects by the end of 2019. The hope is to have the relief line in place by 2031.
The debate didn't unfold without disagreement among councillors.
Josh Matlow fought to put aside the Yonge extension plans, and have staff concentrate on the relief line.
Councillor Giorgio Mammoliti argued that a relief line is great for downtowners, but not for his own constituents.
The downtown relief line has been labelled a priority as a way to ease congestion on the Yonge subway line, Line 1, especially at Bloor station.
Mayor John Tory has been pushing the province to commit to fund building the two lines. He has been on a public campaign since the Wynne government blocked his attempt to bring road tolls to the Gardiner Expressway and DVP as a way to raise money for transit.
He told council Wednesday that working with the province has been a "much more difficult task than I would have thought."
"Why won't the province step up and say, yes we'll be there too as a partner," Tory told council.
Transportation minister Steven Del Duca fired back with a statement, saying, "Mayor Tory just can't take yes for an answer."
Del Duca continues to highlight the funding the province has already provided Toronto for transit projects.
Tory says he is "most grateful" for the money the city has already received, but adds that "we're now talking... about the future."
Because it will take years for the relief line to be built, the mayor has also asked the TTC to come up with short-term solutions on easing congestion on the Yonge line, like starting trains at stops further down the line to allow for additional capacity at the busier stations.