lh aii Letters
Civilising the Great Wen? Bruce Martin The Coming Explosion of London Richard Bailey Back to Nature Huw Wheldon Apartheid and the Press Patrick Duncan Dealing with Oxbridge Professor P. Sargant Florence Orpington Man Stephen Garvin, James II, Hetherington
Who Will Be Watching You? Paul Baratier
Prospects for the Flat A. Crego-Bourne Sex in Oxford Professor J. G. Bullocke The Future of the Aged Sir Hamish MacLaren, S.M.
A Duchess and her Descendants James A. Frere
CIVILISING THE GREAT WEN?
SIR,—It appears that the spread of population of Greater London over the South-East of England is to be encouraged because 'there is now virtually no cleared land in Greater London available for residen- tial purposes.'
How much land is required? It depends on the net residential density. A population increase of 1,250,000 is the overspill anticipated in the Study. Rehoused at 200 persons per acre it needs an area of about 6,000 acres. It is only necessary to cover some of the railway tracks in the London area to provide 6,000 acres for housing.
Furthermore, such 'ground' is already 'owned' by a nationalised industry and housing built thereon would be directly related to an efficient means of communication and well distributed where required over the whole London area.
When will town-planners learn to think in three dimensions and not assume that one use of land excludes another?
I submit that considerations such as these render the conclusions of the South-East Study absurd, based as it is on an unimaginative assessment of the data. Is it really necessary to advocate further sub- urban spread with its concomitant need for service networks of all kinds before alternatives are con- sidered based on modern techniques?
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