So what is London's metropolitan area?

[Docere]

There doesn't seem to be any agreed upon unit that defines London's metropolitan area.

So what is it? The Function Urban Area? London and the surrounding home counties (and all local authorities within)? Something else?

[mhays]

For starters you'd have to include the commuter towns outside "Greater London."

Places 20-30 miles from central London send large percentages of their workforces into at every rush hour, with much of that on commuter trains. For example Tunbridge Wells.

[MolsonExport]

There are at least two London metropolitan areas.

[mrnyc]

that's why no stats can be trusted, at least at a glance with those shifting sands, as clearly the answer has always been whatever is convenient for whatever wants to be bragged about --

[Steely Dan]

Originally Posted by mrnyc

as clearly the answer has always been whatever is convenient for whatever wants to be bragged about --

Pretty much.


Aggregate numbers?

Cast that net out as far as you fucking can!


Oh shit, density?

Reel it in, reel it in, goddamnit!!!

[Yuri]

There are countless. Population from 2021 Census

A: 25,198,118 --- 42,111 km²
B: 24,281,998 --- 36,740 km²
C: 17,915,145 --- 17,586 km²
D: 15,876,845 --- 12,162 km²
E: 15,670,193 --- 11,190 km²
F: 14,595,583 ---- 9,103 km²
G: 13,250,179 ---- 7,312 km²
H: 12,697,101 ---- 5,747 km²
I: 10,694,252 ----- 2,938 km²
J: 9,426,220 ------ 1,957 km²

If you want to know a given definition, just ask.

[New Brisavoine]

Originally Posted by Steely Dan

Pretty much.


Aggregate numbers?

Cast that net out as far as you fucking can!


Oh shit, density?

Reel it in, reel it in, goddamnit!!!

In truth, most English people are not like that. Here we have a select few people (not even British) who want to brag about London being almost as large as New York, but in reality, for most English people, as I remember conversations with English forumers from SSC who didn't care about bragging, London metro area is essentially Greater London. That's why the borders of Greater London were established in the first place, to encompass the whole metropolis.

In the UK, their administrative areas usually correspond to the metropolitan areas (Greater London, Greater Manchester, West Midlands County, even for smaller cities like Plymouth, the administrative area catches all the suburbs).

So they have a tendency, much more than in the US or continental Europe, to consider that anything beyond Greater London is NOT London. I remember a conversation with the forumer Jonesy on SSC (he lives in Herefordshire), he was saying people who live outside of Greater London, in the Home Counties, do not consider that they are some sort of suburbs of London, and English people do not regard them as London suburbs. There's a very big cut at the administrative border, both in terms of identity, and perception.

[mhays]

Like anywhere, it depends on things like where they live, work, and play as well as who they're talking to. If they commute into the city for work, they'll be Londonders. If they're talking to a foreigner, they'll be Londoners. But if their lives are all within the core they'll draw their lines more tightly. Usually.

[Steely Dan]

Originally Posted by New Brisavoine

In truth, most English people are not like that.

I wasn't talking about English people.

Rather all people.

Humans gonna human.

[Crawford]

Originally Posted by mhays

Like anywhere, it depends on things like where they live, work, and play as well as who they're talking to. If they commute into the city for work, they'll be Londonders. If they're talking to a foreigner, they'll be Londoners. But if their lives are all within the core they'll draw their lines more tightly. Usually.

In the North American context, probably, yeah. But I have a lot of German relatives who work in the Frankfurt area and basically none would consider themselves Frankfurt residents. That does not compute to the German mental geography. No one living in Mainz or Wiesbaden considers themselves Frankfurt. Same goes for Bonn with Cologne or Heidelberg with Mannheim. In many cases the "suburb" is older and has more gravitas and identity than the metropolitan center.

[Docere]

Originally Posted by MolsonExport

There are at least two London metropolitan areas.

The real one (England) and the fake one (Ontario).

[Docere]

Originally Posted by Crawford

In the North American context, probably, yeah. But I have a lot of German relatives who work in the Frankfurt area and basically none would consider themselves Frankfurt residents. That does not compute to the German mental geography. No one living in Mainz or Wiesbaden considers themselves Frankfurt. Same goes for Bonn with Cologne or Heidelberg with Mannheim. In many cases the "suburb" is older and has more gravitas and identity than the metropolitan center.

Yeah, these metropolitan area are statistical creations rather than communities that people identify with in any sense.

[Docere]

When a Londoner refers to "the suburbs" I think they more typically mean somewhere in outer London proper, like the borough of Barnet (which is more "Queens" than "Nassau County").

Somewhere like Guildford would be part of the "commuter belt."

[Blitz]

Oh, I thought this was about London, Ontario. I'll see myself out.

[sentinel]

Originally Posted by Docere

The real one (England) and the fake one (Ontario).

You bring up a good point: what is the combined urban area of both London 1 and London 2??!!!

[Crawford]

All I know is London 2 has the better skyline, plus the lovely Keg Steakhouse.

[MolsonExport]

Ah, but the Keg moved out of downtown to place itself in the northern suburbs. Nobody has taken over the old location (which itself was a former train station for CPR).

[MolsonExport]

Take that, UK:

[New Brisavoine]

Don't forget London 3.

[Docere]

There's been some discussion of Slough joining up with London - not sure what's become of that.