Let's go with your point about "density" [[aka population) first. According to city-data.com, the residential population of the Downtown neighborhood [[which includes Bricktown & the CBD) is 4,359. Generous estimates by the Brookings Institute place it at 6,500. See here for downtown population data.

The populations of those living within a half-mile of the proposed M1 Rail line, which would include some parts of the populations of New Center, MIdtown, Brush Park, Art Center, and Med Center, is conservatively 25,355. Remember, this is residential only.

Add the roughly 80,500+ people that work Downtown you have roughly 86,000 people that could potentially use the People Mover. M1 Rail, on the other hand, can tap into the additional 20,965 New Center employees, 12,000 Med Center employees, 2,500 Wayne State employees, and 31,786 WSU students, and suddenly the M1 can serve from 141,320-173,000 people conservatively compared to the DPM's 86,000
Ok, but how many of those people work downtown. I rented downtown .... worked in Troy the whole time. In fact, very few of the people I knew in my building worked anywhere that would be serviceable by this line and I would bet if it was constructed today, a stop would be right outside the front door.
. If people wont walk more than 1/8 of a mile between stops are they going to walk more than 1/8th of a mile off the line?

With regard to all the employees of these places... great someone works in New Center... but they live in Novi.

Just living or working near Woodard doesn't really work around here because it rarely means you do both.
Then you have to factor in the 5,600,000 visitors to the CBD every year for events at Cobo, Fox Theater, Stadiums, etc. But wait--this doesn't include the DIA's 532,273 visitors per year.

So you can see where I'm going with this. Extending the line up Woodward invites hundreds of thousands more potential users to the line than the DPM.
yes to use as a parking shuttle on game day or the auto show.

Regarding suburbanites that come downtown... "won't take the train... would rather just drive," etc. Look at it this way. A Birmingham family comes downtown for a daytime ball game and spends $10 on parking. They leave the stadium hungry, and staring them in the face is the the M1 rail. Suddenly the world is open to them. They can leave the car, safe in the garage, hop on the rail, get out at Atlas or Union Street, grab a burger along Woodward for a change of scenery... shoot, if they're early enough they can even grab a show at DFT or browse the museum -- all without having to gather the kids, cram them in the car, leave the garage, navigate Detroit's confusing streets northwards, pay for parking again when you get to your destination, etc. To me this seems like a very appealing option. People in other cities do it all the time. Why not here? I would wager that suburbanites are much more willing to sacrifice a few extra minutes during their destination-to-destination commute for some added comfort & relaxation
Which again...as I''ve said before and was shouted down...this is the primary function of this rail line... parking shuttle to be used on weekends. Basically your scenario would allow for the thing to be shut from 9-5 M-f on non game days. What about sundays? Will it run for Lions games? As this is Detroit, I'd bet not.

IF we had a current system not run by incompetents, "precious jewel" protectors, or felons, the system of buses would accomplish this task. Any other major city doesn't require a light rail system to get it's people to use public transport to go three blocks on a game day. Counter to what everyone around here believes, Chicago has a shitload of buses and the poors arent the only ones who ride them
Who do you know that actually enjoys driving, especially in Detroit? People would much rather people driven around, or grab a ride--or, in this case, hop on a train.
or a bus if it wasnt half broken down and smelling of bum piss.
Finally, I would wager that suburbanites are not the real target audience here, and if anything they make up a small percentage of the anticipated riders. It's everyday residents, downtown workers, and visitors who want to come to Detroit without renting a car--these people will use the line most frequently.
Then why are the suburbanites being asked to pay for the thing in the name of regionalism if they are clearly not going to be the real target audience?

This is simply not comparable to the M1 line, which covers a distance far greater than is feasible on foot
I don't disagree, lets just make the stops more than a block apart and maybe be a little more ambitious than a plan that takes us from downtown to grand blvd.