Two-thirds of Toronto transit users believe the city’s network isn’t being expanded fast enough to keep pace with population growth, according to a new poll.

The poll, released by Forum Research on Friday, surveyed nearly 2,000 randomly selected riders in Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Calgary and Edmonton about their opinions of their respective cities’ systems.

It determined that only 33 per cent of Toronto riders said enough was being done to expand the transit network to accommodate the city’s rising population. A similar portion of respondents in Montreal and Vancouver said the same about their systems.

In Calgary, however, where the city recently launched a bus rapid transit service and is planning an expansion of its LRT network, more riders had a positive view. Nearly half, or 47 per cent, said enough was being done to expand the system.

The poll results follow Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s release in April of a $28.5-billion GTA transit plan that his government says would be the most ambitious subway build-out in Toronto’s history.

As part of their push to rally support for the plan, to which the federal government and municipalities are being asked to contribute more than $17 billion, the Progressive Conservatives have claimed no new lines have been built in Toronto for decades.

In fact, significant expansion has taken place in recent years, although many experts say the projects that have been pursued weren’t the city’s most pressing priorities.

In December 2017, the TTC opened a subway extension to York Region, while construction for the provincially funded Eglinton Crosstown LRT is scheduled to be complete by 2021. Work is also underway on the Finch West LRT.

The poll found that 82 per cent of Toronto riders said the city’s transit service is either very frequent or somewhat frequent, topping the list of all five cities.

Just 68 per cent of Montreal respondents said service in that city is frequent.

Roughly three-quarters of Toronto riders said service is either very or somewhat reliable, which put it in the middle of the pack compared to the other cities polled.

But Toronto tied with Edmonton for the highest portion of riders who said they often experience unexpected service delays. Forty-eight per cent of riders in both cities reported experiencing disruptions very or somewhat often.

Riders in the two cities also reported the lowest overall satisfaction with their networks, with roughly two-thirds of respondents in both saying they were very or somewhat satisfied.

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Toronto riders were the least likely to report their fellow travellers practise good transit etiquette. Just 69 per cent said transit users are courteous. Calgary scored highest on that question, with 79 per cent reporting that city’s passengers are courteous.

Forum conducted the poll of 1,936 transit riders between May 24 and 27 using an interactive voice response survey. It’s considered accurate plus or minus 2.23 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.

Ben Spurr is a Toronto-based reporter covering transportation. Reach him by email at bspurr@thestar.ca or follow him on Twitter: @BenSpurr

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