OTTAWA—New census data confirms what many Torontonians would already tell you: the city’s sharpest population gains are concentrated downtown, which is experiencing levels of growth that are only matched—and in some cases exceeded—by swaths of the suburbs that ring the Big Smoke.

Several areas of significant population growth—10 per cent or more from 2011 to 2016—run along the waterfront, roughly from the Humber River to the Portlands, according to a colour-coded map released Wednesday by Statistics Canada. The map shows similar growth rates in much of the downtown core, including the Yonge St. corridor, where a number of large condo projects have broken ground in recent years.

However, the gains in population are uneven across Canada’s largest city, with booming neighbourhoods in some cases situated directly beside ones that have seen stagnant growth or population losses.

“There are big, high-rise construction sites in here, so that might be it,” said Johanne Denis, director general for census data analysis at Statistics Canada, adding that more information will be coming later this year that could help explain population changes in Toronto neighbourhoods.

“It’s hard to say with the census data we have today.”

Read more:

Canada’s population grew 1.7M in 5 years, latest census shows

Canada’s 2016 census shows growth rate of new dwellings slowing down

Canada’s fertility rate continues to put pressure on immigration

In the Toronto city centre, several areas saw their populations double or more from 2011 to 2016. One standout is the area along Queen St. W. between Shaw St. and Dovercourt, which saw its population shoot up 109.2 per cent over the five-year period, the data shows.

Liberty Village has also seen large growth, with a population increase of 174.9 per cent over the five-year measurement period.

Out in the 905, the largest growth was in Oakville, where one census tract experienced a skyrocketing 1,700 per cent population gain. And several areas of Brampton more doubled in population from 2011 to 2016.

That was consistent with the overall trend in many of the municipalities around Toronto, several of which saw significant population growth from 2011 to 2016. According to Statistics Canada, this is part of a cross-country trend where “peripheral municipalities” posted higher growth in population than large city centres: 6.9 per cent versus 5.8.

“It’s called the urban sprawl,” Denis said, describing it as a well-established trend, where people move to live in areas outside cities for more land, cheaper houses and other reasons.

Milton posted the largest jump in population for the GTA, 30.5 per cent, with more than 110,000 people living there as of last year. The fast-expanding city—the sixth-fastest-growing municipality in Canada with more than 5,000 people—was followed by Bradford West Gwillimbury, which grew by almost 26 per cent, King Township’s 23.2 per cent growth, and Whitchurch-Stouffville, at 21.8 per cent.

Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading...

Toronto saw the largest increase in absolute numbers. The population of the city itself—not including the surrounding area—jumped by 116,511 to 2,731,571 in 2016, the data shows.

Meanwhile, some areas have shrunk. Several neighbourhoods in Scarborough lost more than 10 per cent of their populations, for example, according to data from the census tract level. Areas west of Yonge St. and north of Queen St., as well as in North York, also saw their populations decline, according to the colour-coded map released Wednesday.

The Toronto Census Metropolitan Area, which includes much of the 905, grew 6.2 per cent to 5,928,040 in 2016. That’s up from just over 4,663,000 in 1996, according to Statistics Canada.

Read more about: