Rob Ford: 'I won't be buying any more streetcars'

Mayor Rob Ford has reiterated his desire to phase out streetcars from service in Toronto and said Wednesday that he plans to halt the purchase of any more of them.

"I won't be buying any more streetcars as long as I’m mayor and I’m planning to be mayor for a long time, much to your chagrin," Ford said, when speaking with reporters at a soccer complex.

The mayor has long professed his support for subways, rather than streetcars.

"I just want to eventually phase 'em out," Ford said.

"Eventually, you know, maybe 20 years, 30 years, let's phase 'em out," he added.

The mayor suggested that as Toronto grows, there will be an increasing number of cars on its roads. Part of the solution to alleviating that growing gridlock is to build more subways, Ford said.

"You can start by, like I said, building subways, getting people out of their cars," he said.

The mayor said he dislikes streetcars so much he would not ride one. 

Ford, who will turn 45 next month, is in the midst of seeking a second term as mayor.

More than 40 others are competing for his job, including former Trinity-Spadina MP Olivia Chow who opposes a planned subway extension in Scarborough that the mayor has championed.

On Wednesday, Ford was asked about Chow’s call to improve transit by putting more buses on the road.

"Spend, spend, spend, that’s Olivia Chow. Spend, spend, spend," he said.