[ssiguy]

^
This is just my own opinion but from what I see this kind of development is not the norm of TOD in the US. Canadians have a unique love affair with highrises which the US doesn't. Most TOD in the states tend to be smaller scale and more like the kind you would find in old town centres. Low rise condo/aprt, townhomes, SFH with very small lots and garages are laneway accessed so front porches are up against the street, local streets with small shops, grocery stores, schools, library all built around the local transit station. Much smaller in scale and I think much more walkable.

I much prefer the American model. The density isn't as high but they have a very pleasant neighbourhood and community feel. Go to different areas in Canada like Vancouver's Metrotown or Toronto's North York and the density is very high but the areas are nothing but highrises up against a transit station. They maybe excellent for transit use but are still alienating, unattractive, uninspired with no sense of community or walkability. Certainly people in Metrotown don't need a car but it's "downtown" is just another large mall with the same stores you get everywhere else on the planet. The only pedestrian traffic is those walking to and from the station or mall but the area is quite bland.

Canadian cities certainly have got the density part of TOD right but these are just stations with people living around them....just a bucnh of highrises that instead of being scattered are plunked down right beside one another. A liveable lifestyle but not a very likeable one. Canadaian TOD seems concerned on developing density but American TOD seems equally concerned with density but that the area also has a sense of community, walkability, and cohension.