When Paco Martínez Soria starred in one of his most memorable films, The City is Not for Me, Spain was culminating one of the greatest social changes in its history: the largest wave of migration from the rural population to the cities. The parody, inspired by a play by Fernando Lázaro Carreter, was nothing more than the reflection of a transformation that involved a large part of the Spanish population and that opened an era of progress and uprooting in equal measure.
In January 1971, the Institute of Public Opinion, precursor of the current Center for Sociological Research, launched a study on the subject with a title that linked to the ancestral longing for rural life: Survey on the problems of man in the big city. . In the midst of developmentalism, this urbanite man – and woman – continued praising country life, even though he seemed satisfied, within an order, with his day-to-day life in the big city.
The survey was carried out on a universe of 1,999 people representing the Spanish urban population over 18 years of age, of different sex and social status and residing in the main capitals: Madrid, Barcelona, ??Valencia, Seville, Zaragoza, Bilbao and Málaga. In the 1969 census, there were a total of more than five million inhabitants. The distribution of surveys by city came to represent the percentage of the population of each of them.
A clear majority favored the option of living in a big city, although with specific visits to the town (67.5%), compared to the option of residing in a small town making specific visits to the city, for which they were applying. a not inconsiderable 30.4% of those surveyed, all of them urbanites.
Although the response regarding well-being and health was even more obvious, and 89.0% clearly responded that life outside the city was healthier. In fact, for 64.1% people got sicker in urban environments than in rural ones. Mental health was also, for those interviewed, worse in the city than in the countryside (70.0%).
Along these lines, 47.9% also considered that people were happier in the town, compared to 28.7% who claimed to find happiness in the city. And the feeling of freedom, paradoxically, was slightly greater for urbanites in the countryside (39.8%) than in the city (39.0%). Of course, those surveyed were clear that in the urban environment one had a better time (67.0%) and even ate better (46.8%).
In the same way, the study determined that, according to those interviewed, in the big city there were more opportunities to work and study (92.6% and 91.4%, respectively), but also “more vice” (93.0% ), moral corruption (82.5%) and crime (86.7%). On the contrary, in the rural context the majority observed that people were more religious (59.4%).
The countryside also beat the city in the feeling of loneliness, since 69.5% of those surveyed responded that in recent days they had felt alone or distant from others despite living in an urban context, either distressed or with fear without knowing why (73.4%). Logically, these responses could not be contrasted with the feelings of the people in the countryside.
Given this positive vision of life in the town, no one pointed to the reality of the emptied Spain that has occurred half a century later and only 7.4% considered that in the future the rural life model would disappear, although a 40.4% did consider that small villages would end up disappearing, presumably in favor of towns, which still served as a powerful economic and social focus.
Regarding the limits of the city, a clear 51.1% indicated that the time had come to put a limit on its growth. Among the problems that respondents found, housing prices stood out, which for 67.4% was a “very important” problem; housing (65.2%); salaries (63.7%); work (54.0%), or education (52.1%). Traffic had also become a serious problem for 50.9% of those surveyed.
The Spanish urbanites of the early 70s not only longed for life in the town, but a good part of them continued to maintain ties with it. In fact, the vast majority of those who declared having a residence outside the city (a surprising 23.9%) had a family home in the town (63.2%). An option that clearly prevailed over the apartment on the beach (a not inconsiderable 11.3%) or in the mountains (5.6%).
That mobility was not only a problem and that the automobile boom was in full swing is demonstrated by the fact that the majority of those interviewed declared they usually went to work by private car (45.2%), although the presence of at less one car in the home was lower (39.8%). Compared to them, 32.0% traveled by bus.
The metro, only operational in Madrid and Barcelona and still without service to the suburbs, was an option for only 6.6%. In fact, 32.5% of those who had a subway in their city indicated that the nearest stop was more than half an hour away on foot. However, a clear majority (58.1%) considered that it was the means of urban transport that would be developed the most. Despite these shortcomings, 64.1% were clear that they would not pay a special fee to improve public transport.
Although parking had already become a problem and 56.1% of those who traveled by car to work had to look for a place to park as they did not have their own or the company’s space, 36.9% cared little or nothing. fines for parking incorrectly are nothing. And in most cases they did not end up being paid. Likewise, only 9.9% of those surveyed had ever had their car taken away by a municipal tow truck.
Regarding housing, the majority were still those who lived as renters (52.7%) compared to owners (40.7%). 63.1% of these homes did not have individual heating (collective heating only covered 12.2%), 30.5% did not have hot water and 5.2% had not yet received running water. The telephone was in 50.4% of homes.
Even so, the main problems of the owners or tenants were hidden behind closed doors, since 49.1% of those interviewed said that the lack of green areas or gardens was an important or very important problem and 41.7% They pointed out the same thing about the “bad urbanization” of the surroundings.
However, for 39.6% the problem was also lack of space. Despite all the problems, 54.2% declared themselves satisfied with their home and 27.1% were very satisfied. Likewise, a resounding 87.8% said they liked their neighborhood.
