The end of megalopolis; the rise of the human


If population is expanding and more people moving to urbanised areas, how can governments allow some of these areas to become semi-abandoned or even ignored, resulting in one of the fastest growing urban typologies being the shanty town?

There are natural rhythms to any area, but this abandonment points more to financial reasons; a lack of responsibility that allows easier land to be developed over land that has already had development. Or worse, ignoring these areas until the value gets high, when all the residents get swept away to make way for 'regeneration'.

This can only have knock on implications, which we are seeing in abundance; whole swathes of cities becoming run down with huge areas being inhabited informally, without basic services or official recognition. Good management could stem this tendency: proper and regular investment to services, facilities and amenities.

Differentiating between the megalopolis and the megacity, the former is superceded never having should have come about - a mistake of the mid-twentieth centrury; the latter is the exploding reality, but which has much potential to become a decent living environment.

What is common to all urban typologies and various combinations is the human, which sets a scale. If the nature of types of connections gravitate around human scale, then the linking of these different fragments can be viably and sustainably integrated.