West Philadelphia born and raised?
The article would be much stronger if there was some quantitative backing of the assertion that east sides are poorer.
Why are the east of cities usually poorer?
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Re: Why are the east of cities usually poorer?
#42Actually in most of the major US cities, the south side is bad. For example, SE DC, south side Chicago, south-central LA
This is true in most cities. Charlotte is the only major city I know of that has the south side of town as its most desirable area.
Re: Why are the east of cities usually poorer?
#43Earlier quoted context omitted.
The OP was discussing the east side of cities, not cities on the east side of the country.
I can't speak for the other cities, but East Beijing actually is much wealthier than West Beijing.
random link dump: Beijing air pollution statistics by district
http://www.bjepb.gov.cn/air2008/Air.aspx
Re: Why are the east of cities usually poorer?
#44West Philadelphia born and raised? The article would be much stronger if there was some quantitative backing of the assertion that east sides are poorer.
Well here's an extra data point: It's definitely true of Montreal. The poor live in the north and east ends whereas the rich live in the "West Island" (the west side of the island where all the suburbs are) and Westmount (which is roughly the west/southwest side of Mount Royal).
Most of the majorly polluting industry is just off the east side of downtown Montreal.
Re: Why are the east of cities usually poorer?
#45This effect seems to be the opposite in Austin. If I'm interpreting the map correctly, the winds blow SW, and most of the affluent/rich areas are out there. The counterpoint is that west austin has more geographical features such as hills, lakes and rivers to offset it.
Re: Why are the east of cities usually poorer?
#46In Australia, where the prevailing winds are also westerlies, the opposite is true. i.e. the east of most cities is more prestigious than the west.
Out of interest, is that typical on both coasts? Just wondering if the river direction has anything to do with it.
On the east coast it tends to be true. As others have mentioned it might not hold on the west coast. I just wanted to give a counterexample that shows how shallow the OP's argument is. The reality is that there are many factors which make certain parts of a city more desirable to live in than another. In Australia proximity to the beach is strongly correlated with desirability. In other places the reasons will differ. Whatever the reason, I don't believe for a second this oversimplified fairy tale about the prevailing wind.
Re: Why are the east of cities usually poorer?
#47In Australia, where the prevailing winds are also westerlies, the opposite is true. i.e. the east of most cities is more prestigious than the west.
True for Sydney, false for Brisbane.
In Sydney it's because East means harbour and/or beach.
In Brisbane east is flat industrial wetlands, West is hilly with views/breezes, with the exception of Clayfied/Hamilton/Ascot. However, if you travel further west towards the city fringes, this reverses quite quickly.
I'd say on balance true for Melbourne, but I'm not enough of an expert to say for sure.
Generally I would say that the desirability of certain areas comes down to : - topography (low, hot bad, hilly, views, breezes good) - orientation : people (in general) like to live on or near the water, assuming the water is clean. Areas that face into hot sun are less desirable. - history : sometimes older parts of cities have bigger houses and land, and are more established.
Re: Why are the east of cities usually poorer?
#48In Santiago, Chile, the East side is richer. I thought this was an exception to the rule until I realised that in the Southern hemisphere the winds are Easterlies!
Re: Why are the east of cities usually poorer?
#49Are there any maps that plot mean/median income levels across different regions of large cities?
Re: Why are the east of cities usually poorer?
#50Sun rises in the East.