Unless it some kind of long haul commuting service in rush hour ie GO trains, transit will never be have the speed of cars. Transit will never be as convinent, comfortably, fast, or reliable. So let's not start making comparisons against someone taking a TC LRT and someone on the 401.
That said, however, does not mean that speed is not relevant, it is very relevant. The reality is that the best transit trip for people is the one they don't remember.............it was fast, comfortable, and blissfully uneventful. People don't take transit for the view but because they want to get from A to B as fast as possible because the less time they spend getting somewhere is more time they have for play, work, study, or spend with family and friends.
How many people take the subways everyday yet they are out of the way? People will take the subways even if the route is out of the way and it's not because they like the view of the tunnels or sitting beside someone who hasn't had a bath in a month. People do want speed............this is why rapid transit lines get it's ridership in the first place. When rapid transit is first built it always gets higher ridership than the bus it replaced well before an urban infill/TOD happens.
People flock to rapid transit because it is exactly that.....rapid. Rapid not only includes speed but also reliability, frequency, and also "relative speed". Realative speed as in you may not be going fast at all but if you are creeping ahead of the cars which are also going no where fast it doesn't seem as bad.
This is the problem I have said from the start in regards to TC...............it doesn't know it's purpose for being.
It will improve transit greatly, no question. TTC patrons will find their transit trip smoother, quieter, more reliable, more spacious, and more accessible but they will not find their trip much faster than what they presently have. The TTC keeps saying that TC will be rapid transit that will improve local service.............there is no such thing as they are two completely different services.
TC will be an improvement over the current situation, no doubt about that and it will serve it's current users well but it will not attract any new riders in any great amount.
If TC {Finch/Sheppard} goes ahead those areas will be receiving far superior transit to what they have now but they will still remain areas that are void of rapid transit.