Quote:
Originally Posted by go go white sox
Not sure what your talking about Chicago is easily as big as Toronto if not bigger. Chicago is more populated, more urban, as big land mass wise, and just feels bigger because it is bigger.
|
Agree with most of this but Chicago is definitely NOT more urban. Chicago is more populated, has a busier regional rail network (Metra vs GO), the busier airport, and the larger skyline (for now) but those are some of the few areas where Chicago is still ahead.
By a large (and growing) number of metrics Toronto has already moved ahead of Chicago. Toronto is far more ethnically diverse, is one of the world's biggest immigrant magnets, feels more cosmopolitan, has higher population density in the core and overall, attracts more foreign direct investment, has a much busier subway system, the busier passenger rail station, and Pearson sees more international passengers than any other airport on the continent except for JFK.
When one looks at industry after industry, Toronto has either pulled up even, ahead, or far ahead. Financial services, aerospace, food processing, tech, autos, and cultural industries are 6 where Toronto is ahead and the gap is widening.
I'm not sure if the 'Chicago feels bigger' holds up to scrutiny either. When you stand in downtown Toronto and look to the suburbs one doesn't see endless low rise but other skylines all over the place. It gives the feeling that one's in a bigger metro, not a smaller one. From the CN Tower, to the Skydome, to the busiest highway on the planet, Toronto feels very large when you move around it.
Some in Chicago might like holding on to that quaint notion that Toronto is their little Great Lakes sibling but that's largely a comforting delusion. One only need visit in 2016 and it takes all of 1 day to realize it.