WNY population trends project slow gains in '90s. (Western New York)

WNY population trends project slow gains in '90s

If you thought there were less people on the streets of Western New York lately, you were right.

Western New York over the past decade slipped four notches on the list of the nation's largest metropolitan areas, and it is expected to drop further during the 1990s.

Figures from the U.S. Census Bureau show that the Buffalo-Niagara Falls area lost 53,538 residents during the 1980s. Only Pittsburgh, Detroit and Cleveland suffered larger declines in absolute numbers.

The local metro, which consists of Erie and Niagara counties, was the nation's 29th largest in 1980, but fell to 33rd place in 1990. The metros of Indianapolis, Norfolk-Virginia Beach, …