Escape to the country : will people leave cities behind post-pandemic

Escape to the country: Will people leave cities behind post-pandemic? | The Independent | The Independent

For centuries, cities have been plagued by periodic crises. The Great Plague of 1665 killed 70,000 Londoners, and those who could afford to leave fled the city. King Charles II and his courtiers left for Hampton Court. Parliament was moved to Oxford. All trade between London and other plague towns was stopped. The border with Scotland was closed.
Across the channel was no different: in 1641 the future King Louis XIV of France was sent from Paris to Versaille to escape a smallpox epidemic. Centuries later, George IV – whose health was declining – was advised by physicians to escape the English capital and live in Brighton, so he could benefit from the sea air (something the upper classes would later begin to do en-masse).
Even in modern times, parts of society have always planned an escape for when city life becomes perilous: both 9/11 and the July 2005 London bombings saw a spike in interest in rural properties, according to Rupert Sweeting, head of national sales at Knight Frank estate agents.


But these shifts were always, largely, temporary. The opportunities for employment, wealth and education that urban areas offered meant that, like Dick Whittington, each generation of youth continued to be tempted by streets “paved with gold”. But what about in a post-Covid world; will technology, and the ability for many to work remotely – on 9 July Matt Hancock said he would consider making it mandatory for employers to give the option of remote working – mean the exodus is final?

Property prices, commuting times, population density... If most city dwellers used to live with it, this particular period of confinement has changed that. By remaining confined to their homes, people have become aware of the cramped space in which they live, without access to the outside world for the most part. And the pandemic has made them more and more eager to get out of the big city, which is seen as a suffocating place

People want to own their own homes, but they also want more countryside and are even prepared to travel further to work since the widespread use of teleworking during confinement has shown that a new organisation is possible

Hello everyone
It is true that teleworking makes it possible to be at any location and not waste time travelling. However, it is not so easy not to see your colleagues in person, to work at home in a noisy atmosphere,
to be away from good schools and activities for your children, to be constantly disturbed by phone calls or emails because there is no longer a clear separation between the office and the home. So how will the society come about?