To think England is too crowded

[toadworthy]

In my town on the South coast it really is chaos and getting worse all the time. Roads are a nightmare. There are never enough school places despite doubling the entry in all primaries. Soaring rents. Building sites all over.

AIBU to mind?
What's it like where you are?

There is only one country of its size (or larger) more densely populated than England on the entire planet, and that is Bangladesh.

It is simply a fact that England is overcrowded.

Come to Northern Ireland, there's nobody here.

I live in inner London...

I also fly quite a lot, which means I spent a lot of time looking at England out of a plane window
The thing that strikes me is how green and undeveloped it is. Fields everywhere

The problem is not an overcrowded country. It is that we all bunch up in the same few towns and cities, and then moan that there are too many people around us.

"Try living in Tokyo, then you'll understand what "overcrowded" really means."

The population density of metro Tokyo is half that of greater London.

toadworthy, I'd rather people were housed, TBH. But, I'll repeat it, there is plenty of open space in the form of woods, grasslands, still in the UK.

And over half of the land in urban areas is actually green (parks, playing fields, allotments etc).

Not at all crowded where I am, minutes from the sea, minutes from the countryside, school places for all (kids all just go to their catchment school here, they all get a place). Roads are quiet, housing is cheap and the air is clear.

Far too many people in London. Travelling on public transport is distressing, you actually can't walk down many of the streets because of over crowding. Huge waiting times for GPs etc, putting names down for schools before children have been born. It's very stressful. I couldn't work anywhere else unfortunately.

I am not England though, I am in Scotland.

simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_population_density

so people can look at some actual facts-
53rd in the world for uk
not even number 1 in europe

There are other places in England than your town you know!

I'm in Scotland and we're not particularly crowded. Lots of England isn't that crowded either.

Inside the M25 may be crowded.

London's fine. It's always been bustling.

"England" isn't too crowded. Your town might be. I live in London and where I am doesn't feel particularly crowded. But perhaps I am just used to it.

Pepper, even in London I find that while, yes, one street may be busy, all you need do is nip off it to one side and it'll be a lot quieter. Even/particularly in the West End; just stepping off Oxford Street into Mayfair or Marylebone, for example, makes a massive difference.

Public transport, too, is crowded at certain times of certain days, but not by all means all the time.

We are overcrowded in terms of facilities but not space.

You can't put your unborn child on a school waiting list

Unless you are talking about a few elite private schools

But agree London is overcrowded far more so than even 10 years ago

I live in semi rural Yorkshire. And population increase is becoming a problem.

The idea that we would see a shortage of school places in our area was unthinkable twenty years ago, but it's becoming an acute problem. One of the difficulties is that there isn't actually any space to extend the current schools, nor build new ones.

The real problem though is traffic. Our roads are pretty much solid from 7.30am to 7pm during the week. Dh and I have to be out of the house for 6am to guarantee we will get to work by 9am. It's only a 35 mins drive but if we set off any later, it turns into two hours plus.

It seems nobody is thinking about planning or medium to long term viability. The council is allowing people to erect houses on miniscule footprints on already busy roads with no off road parking.

I dread to think what the area will be like in ten or more years. Nobody will be able to get anywhere.

I live in a village with about 2000 inhabitants, surrounded by fields as far as I can see.

I also happen to be an immigrant, migrated to the UK 22 years ago.

Should I just go back to where I came from ? Would that help, do you think ?

Mind you, this whole overcrowding issue always leaves me confused. My ex MIL lives on the moors, she also thinks UK is overcrowded. She believes that this, and many other ills, are all the fault of immigrants. She has no problem telling this to my DD.

My DD is never sure if that also means that only half of her is allowed in this country.

Which town on the south coast?

The whole planet is over crowded. We're due a big pandemic. Or zombie outbreak.

Depends where you are. South east is over populated but some are areas around most capital cities

Maybe we could move London to Northumberland

I think it is important to recognise that not all green land you see from a plane is suitable for building.

There are huge swathes of land just up from our house, but it's peat bog. It may look green and empty from the sky but down on the ground, it's useless for anything but rearing some sheep in certain parts.

YAY FOR THE NORTHERN POWER HOUSE AND HS2.

Oh wait, when are we putting up a wall to keep those southerners out and preserve our Northern Culture and Heritage and keep our stock of brown sauce and pies safe?

There are not enough flat caps and cardboard boxes to go around. Our language is at threat from those who say 'Barth'.

They have come up here in their droves since the establishment of the BBC with their posh cheese, funny ideas and their money pushing up the cost of houses even more so the indigenous locals can't afford it anymore. And they have taken all our jobs. Do you know how many jobs at the BBC went to the locals? That's right. They built it on the promise of opportunities for northerners and then pretty much just employed those southerners from back down there rather than giving us a chance.

Those claiming we're a tiny full up island are dimwits of the highest order.

Actually I claim we're a tiny island full up of dimwits of the highest order. Some of them have given special status as elected dimwits. Some of them are former elected dimwits. They were put there by dimwit masses.

You know if we thought about things for a second and really planned we'd be dangerous as a country. Innovative, creative and world leaders. We could put the Great Back into Britain. Leaving the EU, might even make some sense if Brexit had 'a plan' and 'some consensus'. Alien and abstract concepts that they are to the UK.

Ahhh but instead we are obsessed with the old immigration debate, which really is divisive old hat and goes back, oh a few thousand years and hasn't really had much success yet. In fact its track record is a bit pants really.

Trouble is planning is really boring and doesn't make people froth enough to sell column inches.

Maybe we could move London to Northumberland

Move it to NI, that'd learn 'em.

When I see green fields and playing fields built on it makes me sad though, because they will never come back. Don't the rest of you mind? Is it sentimental? Build up more than out. Build services and roads with the future in mind, always incorporate green spaces and plan.

I'm more sentimental about children drowning off our coasts because their parents are so desperate.

We are privileged and lucky. That should mean we are magnanimous and generous. Noblesse oblige and all that.

Travelling on public transport is distressing, you actually can't walk down many of the streets because of over crowding. Huge waiting times for GPs etc, putting names down for schools before children have been born

Just called my GP (zone 2/1, v popular area) and the next appointment they can offer me is Wednesday. Or if I want a before or after work appointment, then Thursday. I don't know of anyone who put their child's name down for a school before their 3rd birthday.

Other than just after kicking out time of a major concert or sports match, the only time I've seen a street has been too busy to walk down was when One Direction were holed up in a hotel near Covent Garden, and their fans got wind and mobbed the area. And I've lived and worked in London for 15 years, and walk several miles a day around the city