Torontonians twice as likely to see public transport as convenient than driving

• New global study, commissioned by Hitachi Rail, finds four in five Torontonians back investing in public transport over driving in their city
• Almost two-thirds (62%) see public transport as convenient, but overcrowding is the biggest barriers to using it more
• With enhanced service capacity to avoid overcrowding, 78% of Torontonians would swap the car for public transport more often.

Torontonians overwhelmingly (80%) back investing in public transport over driving, according to a new global survey commissioned by Hitachi Rail. In a win for sustainable travel in their city, Torontonians also believe their public transport system is more convenient than driving, and almost one-third (30%) expect to use the train more in the next five years.

The research, carried out by SavantaComres, collected data from 12,000 people in 12 different cities around the world, including Berlin, Copenhagen, Dubai, London, Milan, Paris, San Francisco, Singapore, Sydney, Toronto, Warsaw and, Washington D.C. The results from 1,000 Torontonians provides a statistically accurate picture of how Toronto’s citizens view their public transport compared to other major cities around the world.

The research shows that despite the car being the most important means of commuting in Toronto (66%), 50% of commutes also involve public transport. The majority of Torontonians are also clear that they find public transport (62%) more convenient than driving, while 37% think the opposite. In this context, it is no surprise that four in five back investing in public transport over driving in the city, with a majority (53%) also supporting the idea of increased road user charges to fund public transport.

So how do city planners and the wider transport industry encourage more people onto green public transport in Toronto?

Looking at what motivates Torontonians’ decisions to travel by public transport, respondents are most likely to be influenced by how convenient the service is (91%) – both in terms of frequency of service and accessibility – and by personal safety (also 91%). Potential passengers are also most likely to be put off using public transport because of crowding on services (53%). Equally, respondents were clear that they would use public transport more if they knew it offered the fastest journey time (80%) and also if they could avoid overcrowding (78%).

In good news for the city, the enhanced capacity and service speed that the research shows Torontonians would value, will be provided by the new Ontario Line. The 15.6km subway line, which is being delivered by Hitachi Rail as part of the Connect 6ix consortium, will create a high-frequency rapid transit service – with trains running as frequently as every 90 seconds – through the heart of Toronto. The new line will have the ability to move up to 30,000 people per hour in each direction and will be a major enhancement in public transit capacity and connectivity.

The support for more public transport from respondents was not just confined to travel within the city. In fact, when asked to consider longer distance journeys, almost one-third (30%) believe that they will travel more by train in the next five years – a substantially higher number than those expecting to drive (21%) or fly (5%) more.

Joseph Pozza, President of Hitachi Rail, North America, said: “Our research highlights that twice as many Torontonians find public transport convenient than those that find driving to be so. This is a real boost for green travel in the city and is backed up by Torontonians overwhelmingly (80%) supporting more investment in public transport over driving.

“The data highlights that people are prepared to use public transport even more if we can increase speed and capacity on services. In this context, we are delighted as part of the Connect 6ix Consortium to be delivering the new Ontario Line. The transformational line will boost capacity and journey speeds and help deliver seamless and sustainable travel across the city.”

ENDS

Notes to Editors

The fieldwork for the survey was conducted by Savanta ComRes in December 2023

• Sample of approx 1000 people were surveyed in each of the following: London, Berlin, Milan, Dublin, Warsaw, Washington, San Francisco, Toronto, Paris, Singapore, Sydney, Copenhagen.
• The sample size of 1,000 people is the gold standard for delivering a statistically accurate account of a population to within 3%.
• ‘Long-distance travel’ was defined as any journey of at least 2.5 hours
• Hitachi Rail’s full report can be downloaded here: Better Connected | Hitachi Rail