Toronto is set to get a one-stop Scarborough subway extension whether people ride it or not. City officials have unveiled new ridership projections for the line that paint a troubling picture of barely used trains.

"By 2031, at its busiest hour in its busiest direction, 7,300 people are expected to ride the new subway," according to a report in the Star today.

That would make it one of the least used portions of the line, along with stations like Ellesmere and Bessarion. The ridership was initially projected at roughly twice these numbers, but that was when it was planned as a three-stop line and before John Tory's SmartTrack idea got traction.

The numbers unveiled this week once again suggest that an LRT better suits the needs of this community, even if there's fierce political will to complete a subway extension in Scarborough.

The mayor's response to questions about the latest ridership projections was basically if we build it they will come, but the city's own reports don't seem to support that belief.

Photo by dtstuff9 in the blogTO Flickr pool.