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Does one really know what it "feels" like to be in a metro far larger than 13 million?
You take a metro like Chicago, which feels like a noticeabley larger metro than, let's say, DC. Then you take NYC, which feels like a noticeabley larger metro than Chicago. Then you Compare LA to both. To me, LA feels like a Metro closer in size to the NYC metro than it does to Chicagoland.
Location: That star on your map in the middle of the East Coast, DMV
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Quote:
Originally Posted by KodeBlue
You take a metro like Chicago, which feels like a noticeabley larger metro than, let's say, DC. Then you take NYC, which feels like a noticeabley larger metro than Chicago. Then you Compare LA to both. To me, LA feels like a Metro closer in size to the NYC metro than it does to Chicagoland.
I don't think that's how you quantify a total number though. I've traveled extensively. What we call a "metro area" in America, is like an entire region of a small country. Istanbul is way smaller than LA but has 15 million people in the same radius that LA does with like 1/5th the land area. Sure LA feels grand and large, but calculating a total between 13-18 million isn't that easy IMO.
LA is easily larger than everywhere but NYC, but it's really about what constitutes "LA".
Trying to find the most population possible that I can here without going over water and centering this radius around Covina at 65km/40 miles, I can find the region maxing out at 15.2 million people for what I'd call "LA", this includes all of LA County, OC, and the Riverside, and San Bernadino cities without extending past Moreno Valley.
I don't think that's how you quantify a total number though. I've traveled extensively. What we call a "metro area" in America, is like an entire region of a small country. Istanbul is way smaller than LA but has 15 million people in the same radius that LA does with like 1/5th the land area. Sure LA feels grand and large, but calculating a total between 13-18 million isn't that easy IMO.
LA is easily larger than everywhere but NYC, but it's really about what constitutes "LA".
Trying to find the most population possible that I can here without going over water and centering this radius around Covina at 65km/40 miles, I can find the region maxing out at 15.2 million people for what I'd call "LA", this includes all of LA County, OC, and the Riverside, and San Bernadino cities without extending past Moreno Valley.
I'm not trying to qualify a total number. Charlotte, where I live now, feel like a far smaller metro than Atlanta even without knowing the actual population figures. As you said, LA feels like a much larger metro than anywhere except NYC.
I'll see what I can get for both NYC using your link. I think some of what constitutes NYC CSA is a bit ridiculous.
Even though Riverside is a separate metro according to the government's definition, it's obvious in looking at
google maps that in reality it's an extension of L.A.
New York metro is 19.5 million and LA metro (including Riverside suburbs) is about 17.5 million.
It doesn't seem impossible that LA region could catch NY, although at the moment I think California's population is actually dropping, presumably due to home prices.
California’s population may be dropping, but that can’t be the case in every town in that state.
As for can LA Metro reach and/or surpass NYC Metro, yes it can but I don’t think it will happen.
Even though Riverside is a separate metro according to the government's definition, it's obvious in looking at
google maps that in reality it's an extension of L.A.
If that’s the case, Milwaukee should be a part of Chicagoland.
I don't think that's how you quantify a total number though. I've traveled extensively. What we call a "metro area" in America, is like an entire region of a small country. Istanbul is way smaller than LA but has 15 million people in the same radius that LA does with like 1/5th the land area. Sure LA feels grand and large, but calculating a total between 13-18 million isn't that easy IMO.
LA is easily larger than everywhere but NYC, but it's really about what constitutes "LA".
Trying to find the most population possible that I can here without going over water and centering this radius around Covina at 65km/40 miles, I can find the region maxing out at 15.2 million people for what I'd call "LA", this includes all of LA County, OC, and the Riverside, and San Bernadino cities without extending past Moreno Valley.
Yeah it is very hard to put a number to feel.
LA is the most consistently dense Urban Area in the US but compared to other mega cities around the world the urban density isn't all that.
US metropolitan areas are expensive.
I know LA CSA contains a lot of mountains and dead space but it is a whopping 34,000 square miles. Mostly due to how big counties like SB County is. The MSA cuts it down to a fraction. LA county alone is near megacity status and about 5000sq miles. That is small in US terms but still huge in international terms.
The Kanto Region for example is also mountainous and contains two metro areas like LA, but it has about 45M people in 12k sq miles. Carving out the massive areas like I did when I narrowed LA just to LA county Tokyo metro shrinks to a little under 40k but in only 5000 sq miles.
US regions are built very differently from other international regions and within the US it varies quite a bit also. Eastern and Western urban development is hard to compare because the eastern ones have higher density peaks but lower density lows, while places like LA, las Vegas and Phoenix have consistently average density over almost the entire urban area.
Because of all that it is really hard comparing LA's metro feel to New York or even Chicago.
The Texas cities might be a better comparison as to how much bigger LA feels over them. Houston especially has that consistent UA like LA. I would say LA feels at least twice as big as Houston. But that would just put it at where it's at right now at about 14M people. NY on the otherhand feels more than 3 times as big as Houston
Location: That star on your map in the middle of the East Coast, DMV
8,129 posts, read 7,568,606 times
Reputation: 5786
Quote:
Originally Posted by KodeBlue
I'm not trying to qualify a total number. Charlotte, where I live now, feel like a far smaller metro than Atlanta even without knowing the actual population figures. As you said, LA feels like a much larger metro than anywhere except NYC.
I'll see what I can get for both NYC using your link. I think some of what constitutes NYC CSA is a bit ridiculous.
You're the one that mentioned 13 million for LA was too small. Not saying you're not correct there, but just saying is it that simple to quantify a number. Especially when you start take examples in this country and comparing to others.
NYC is so much more linear in spread of it's population that at a 65km circle the most I could fit in was about 18 million, but that's pretty accurate to it's MSA population.
Now take the same radius and go down to Mexico city and you get 23+ million at it's peak no matter where you place the circle.
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