I've been wondering if "one-off rural housing" can be described as ultra-low density suburbanisation. I've been looking at data: Census Small Area statistics, in fact.
Result, this map:
Rural Census Small Areas with >40% of housing stock build in the period 2000-2022 (bulk in 2000-2008, 2nd phase of Celtic Tiger). Huge patterns of ultra-low density suburbanisation in some areas (Galway city environs) but not others. What's going on east of the M11, SE coast?
The East coast is driven by folks wanting somewhere close to Dublin that has access to beaches and the like but is also outside the main commuter belt.
There’s another issue in a lot of coastal areas even far from Dublin/Cork/Galway but it’s along coastal strips so not as clear as this map. Much of the southeastern and southern coastline is effectively suburban apart from sections dominated by long runs of cliffs.
@helvick I'm very impressed by the Wexford/Gorey block, and I suspected the M11 explained a good deal of that.
Because the Small Areas are very small, they should pick up coastal-strip effect. However, the age of the housing stock is a bit of a blunt tool (I use it because it gives an insight into change, in a single data set, and merging SAPS over time is hard).
And Galway seems to think it's Los Angeles!
Yeah looking at it again it does pick that up pretty well it’s just that there is also a fairly wild level of general background development too. The Celtic Tiger effect really was a thing.
The sprawling hotspot up around Derry / NE Donegal is also quite intriguing to me. My gut feel is that it’s very different on the other side of the border, simply from how rural NI feels to me when driving through it.
Great map for this sort of musing. Nice work.
@helvick @MartinJBreen The point about Derry is interesting, and likely true. Ditto the Wicklow/Wexford difference.
And note how the Galway Sprawl (I think it has a name, now) doesn't extend either west of the city (not much, anyway) or into North Clare.
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