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You might as well just do Detroit-Toronto to compare to Seattle-Vancouver... It's only about an hour longer to drive from Detroit to Toronto as it from Seattle to Vancouver(and border waits can be long crossing up in Blaine, Washington going both ways)...
Detroit-Windsor is basically one metro, while Seattle to Vancouver is several metros--and there's a lot of ground on I-5 between them including Bellingham.
I know Vancouver and Seattle are far apart but I choose them because they seem tied to each other unlike Detroit and Toronto.
Part of it is because Vancouver doesn't really have many connections to anywhere else. You got your Trans-Canadian Highway and then I-5. Every other direction is remote mountain and ocean.
Toronto on the other hand has Montreal/Ottawa/Quebec to the northeast, Buffalo/Upstate New York to the south, and Detroit/Michigan to the east as well as some other small Canadian towns along the way. So basically, connections are more dispersed from Toronto than they are from Vancouver.
Though I will mention that the freight connections between Toronto and Detroit are pretty important given that both metros are major manufacturing centers. The 401 is a major route for trade and that connection is set to improve once the Windsor-Essex expressway and the New International Trade Crossing are complete in ~2020.
I know Vancouver and Seattle are far apart but I choose them because they seem tied to each other unlike Detroit and Toronto.
They're not "tied to each other" at all. Their economies are very separated. Sometimes people from Van visit Seattle. Sometimes vice-versa. They're probably just as tied (or not tied) to each other as Detroit and Toronto are.
They're not "tied to each other" at all. Their economies are very separated. Sometimes people from Van visit Seattle. Sometimes vice-versa. They're probably just as tied (or not tied) to each other as Detroit and Toronto are.
Yeah, I think people from outside the area think the cities are more closely tied than they are. It's a good weekend trip, place to see a show or sporting event to go from Seattle to Vancouver or vice versa, but I don't feel that the areas have the closer relationship that people imagine. Even in terms of travel, when I go to Vancouver, I hear people say, "Oh yeah, I've been to Seattle a few times."
The US town right on the border that's closely tied to BC is Blaine, and that's mainly a shopping opportunity for Canucks looking to avoid GST. Bellingham is more tied to Vancouver in that way as well, since Costcos up there get flooded by people from Vancouver(same with the Mt. Baker area).
Yeah, I think people from outside the area think the cities are more closely tied than they are. It's a good weekend trip, place to see a show or sporting event to go from Seattle to Vancouver or vice versa, but I don't feel that the areas have the closer relationship that people imagine. Even in terms of travel, when I go to Vancouver, I hear people say, "Oh yeah, I've been to Seattle a few times."
The US town right on the border that's closely tied to BC is Blaine, and that's mainly a shopping opportunity for Canucks looking to avoid GST. Bellingham is more tied to Vancouver in that way as well, since Costcos up there get flooded by people from Vancouver(same with the Mt. Baker area).
Agree about Blaine and Bellingham.
Also I'd say Buffalo is more tied to Toronto than Detroit.
Though a huge amount of trade flows down the 401 from Toronto to Detroit and vice versa.
Don't forget about London, Ontario with a metro of 474,000 and it is only 2 hours from Detroit. So, combine Windsor and London and you are at 750,000. Also, Sarnia is only 1 hour away from Detroit and has a metro area of 90,000. So between Windsor, Sarnia, and London, the total population is 850,000. In short, there are almost 1 million Canadians within a 2 hour drive from Detroit. I know that it is still not as large as Vancouver Metro area, but thought I'd just mention these cities which seem to have been forgotten. But by the same token, there is also Victoria, BC.
I'm not sure why you'd mention Windsor - its a pretty small non-descript city that isn't even close to being in the league of any of the other three..
I'd give Detroit architecture, Higher Education and Cost of living over Seattle and Vancouver but every other criteria give to Seattle/Vancouver as a combo or heck even separately.. Now I've heard that you can get a REALLY cheap house in Detroit which gives it a cost of living/value proposition but would you really want to live in that house... prolly not!
I wouldn't give Detroit higher education. U of M is really the only good school in Michigan and it ranks right next to the University of Washington, plus UBC ranks just behind them. One school doesn't make the entire area win I think it has the do with the amount of Quality institutions there.
I wouldn't give Detroit higher education. U of M is really the only good school in Michigan and it ranks right next to the University of Washington, plus UBC ranks just behind them. One school doesn't make the entire area win I think it has the do with the amount of Quality institutions there.
But as a previous poster mentioned and i'm inclined to agree - If you are going to lump Seattle with Van than it is fair to link Detroit with more than just Windsor - just little less than 3.0 hour drive from Detroit (about the same distance as Seattle/Van) you've got University of Waterloo, University of Western Ontario, Wilfred Laurier Uni etc... keep in mind Southern Ontario is as populous as the State of Washingon and Province of B.C (Not even touching Michigan) - stretch yes but not so much so when compared to Seattle/Van. Personally I don't like these super-region comparisons myself but i'm not the OP
But as a previous poster mentioned and i'm inclined to agree - If you are going to lump Seattle with Van than it is fair to link Detroit with more than just Windsor - just little less than 3.0 hour drive from Detroit (about the same distance as Seattle/Van) you've got University of Waterloo, University of Western Ontario, Wilfred Laurier Uni etc... keep in mind Southern Ontario is as populous as the State of Washingon and Province of B.C (Not even touching Michigan) - stretch yes but not so much so when compared to Seattle/Van. Personally I don't like these super-region comparisons myself but i'm not the OP
Yeah, at 13.6 million, Ontario has population of BC and Washington combined.
If it was a state it would be 5th largest in population just ahead of Illinois.
Yeah, at 13.6 million, Ontario has population of BC and Washington combined.
If it was a state it would be 5th largest in population just ahead of Illinois.
Add Michigan's 10 million and you've got 23.6 million people in the Province of Ontario and State of Michigan.. This is going to start becoming a Washington/B.C vs Michigan/Ontario (Automobile Production Powerhouses of the world!!) thread now
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