GTA population growth drops to 78,407 in 2015 with nearly three-quarters of the growth in the 905 area
March 16, 2016 – This release uses data provided by Statistics Canada to look at the various components of population growth in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) over the past decade, more specifically the city of Toronto and the four regions that make up the 905 area.
In the later part of the decade, population growth in the GTA has slowed down and is currently at its lowest level, at 78,407 persons in 2015. Most of the population growth (nearly three quarters in 2015) the GTA experiences is found in the 905 area. The primary driver of the GTA’s population growth is net immigration, and due to its decline in the past two years, it has brought down the overall population growth. While the city of Toronto for most of the past decade had been the primary receiving area for net immigration, just recently, in the last two years (2014-2015) the largest influx of net immigrants has shifted from the city of Toronto to the 905 area.
While estimates for intraprovincial migration for the latest year (2015) is assumed to be the same as the previous year, it still shows an interesting population shift in the GTA. Historically, the city of Toronto has lost a significant portion of its population to the 905 area, with the attraction of a larger supply of ground-related housing and employment opportunities. In the 905 area, net intraprovincial migration has sharply declined throughout the decade dropping from 37,000 persons in 2006 to only 2,900 in 2014 and 2015, signaling that this area is not only receiving fewer net in-migrants from Toronto, but also experiencing a net loss to areas outside the 905 area such as Simcoe county.
View Charts