Toronto Mayor David Miller remained neutral during the provincial election campaign, but now that a winner has been chosen, he is confident Ontario's cities will take priority at Queen's Park.

"The election dynamic was clear -- all three parties said uploading is right, the cities are right -- they're improperly financed," Miller said on Thursday.

"I'm optimistic for progress at that table. I don't believe it will be immediate, but I think there's a tremendous opportunity to ensure Toronto and other cities are properly funded."

The McGuinty-led Liberals earned a second-straight majority on Wednesday night.

In addition to the uploading promise, McGuinty made several transit pledges for the Greater Toronto area, including:

  • A $17.5 billion transit plan -- the largest ever rapid transit announcement initiative in Canadian history -- that will be invested in the Toronto region over 12 years starting in 2008. The plan includes 52 rapid transit projects and is expected to create 175,000 jobs;
  • A $30-million project for a flagship transit hub at Kipling Station, which he says will be complete in 2010; and
  • Investments of $6 billion for infrastructure and $1.7 billion to improve highways.

Miller, who was formerly a member of the provincial New Democratic Party but refrained from endorsing a party this year, urged residents to "vote for Toronto" the day before the election, the Toronto Star reported.

"Tomorrow's the chance for Torontonians to get out and make sure the local candidate they vote for is somebody who's actually going to support this city and fight for it when they're elected as MPP," Miller said on Tuesday.

Miller said he drew attention to Toronto's cash crunch during the provincial election.

But Councillor Brian Ashton said the mayor didn't succeed in bringing Toronto's case to the forefront.

"He blew it," Ashton said in a recent interview.

Ashton said Miller should have focused on the costs and responsibilities dumped on the city by the Conservatives under former premier Mike Harris, the Star reported.

"He had an issue where more people were thinking about city finances than they ever had in the past," Ashton said.