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PaperclipPerfector  1d ago (text post)   1458 thread views

Small-Scale Question Sunday for July 27, 2025

Do you have a dumb question that you're kind of embarrassed to ask in the main thread? Is there something you're just not sure about?

This is your opportunity to ask questions. No question too simple or too silly.

Culture war topics are accepted, and proposals for a better intro post are appreciated.

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I've been noticing a lot of interesting trends as I read comments here, and I have a few questions for anyone who would be willing to answer.

For these distances, I'm only looking for rough numbers.

  1. How far away is the closest symphony orchestra that pays it's musicians?
  2. How far away is the closest bespoke suit shop?
  3. How far away is the nearest commercial farm (not hobby), and what do they farm?
  4. How far away is the nearest Amtrak station?
  5. How far away is the nearest Walmart?
  6. How far away is the nearest international airport?

  1. A couple of miles

  2. Less than a mile

  3. I didn’t know, but there are apparently dozens of commercial farms in the green belt around London, maybe 20 or 30 miles? Livestock, milk, fruits, the usual.

  4. The north-easternmost Amtrak station, so either Boston or somewhere in Maine if they go that far north.

  5. Don’t have it here, but their nearest former subsidiary Asda is ~4 miles away. The nearest Costco is like 6 or 7 miles away.

  6. 5 miles to London City, 20 to Heathrow.

There's a farm on the Isle of Dogs that is probably the closest to the average Londoner, but even outside of that are quite a few farms inside the southern boroughs

Mudchute farm is great and kids love it, but I wouldn't call it a commercial farm.

The M25 is 15-20 miles out of central London and there is some agricultural land inside it, particularly in Kent and around Watford. Mostly a mixture of wheat and rough grazing. The serious market gardening is further out - presumably because it is labour intensive and needs to be somewhere where migrant farm worker dorms are cheaper.

The density of ASDAs in London outside zone 1 is such that I am surprised you can be more than 2 miles away from the nearest one. If the "Walmart equivalent" is any big-box retail discounter (including Aldi/Lidl) then make that 1.5 miles.

For my own answers to the questions (also in London suburbs)

  1. 8 miles, 45 minutes door-to-door whether you bike, train, or drive outside rush hour. (In central London)
  2. 1.5 miles for a studio which sends designs to Italy for cutting. Savile Row is 9 miles away.
  3. 13 miles, about 1 hour by bike or public transport, 40 minutes driving. (Nearest land which is clearly farmland based on Google satellite)
  4. Nearest commuter rail station is <0.5 miles. If I leave the house 7 minutes before the train is due I won't miss it. Nearest station with intercity trains is 5 miles away on the edge of central London.
  5. Nearest ASDA is <1 mile away.
  6. 5 miles

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