That’s such a dumb statement from an exec member at Metrolinx. Let’s take an example here. The Kitchener line connects some of the most populous cities in Ontario after the Lakeshore line, and is, optically on a map, the closest point to expand all the way to London, another populous city. Many people have to frequently go into Toronto for work, family, education, etc. Do they think that number’s gonna go down in 30 years’ time? What the heck gonna happen to make that number go down?

And the GTA is not even bigger than the Greater Tokyo Area by both its urban and metro land mass. Sure, it’s 3x denser in Tokyo, but it’s dense not cause people have nowhere else to live, but cause the infrastructure IS there to facilitate it. Induced demand works for railways as much as they do for highways.