What's new in the UK?

Having been away from the UK for the the best part of the last decade, what has changed?

To kick off the list the place has become more crowded.  Admittedly, I've just come from a very un populated place, and some of this might be a comparative observation. However the place has definitely filled up.  Guildford in particular has changed for it.  Houses have become flats, the roads are fuller, and driving slower.  

Guildford I remember as a place I used to visit occasionally.  There was the annual trip to the hobbyist show.  On a green outside the town, a show would take place yearly.  After the show we would amble down the high street to purchase a few odds and ends.  The main draw was the conglomeration of weird James May types who all had their particular passion.  I particularly remember the guys who made smaller lathes, from lathes they had made.  A recursive hobby allowing them to miniaturise their products.  Of particular note also were the guys who made a miniature turbo jet engine, and measured the thrust produced in the public area.  Ten years ago this used to cause us to sit in a traffic jam for about 20 minutes in order to find a park.  Now Guildford has become a London borough. Traffic rammed in tight, with little space, and an almost permanent state of almost traffic jam.  The high street is busier than I remember it, but that's probably the comparative bias.

As a younger man I rented in Milton Keynes. Houses were usually houses, and flats usually flats.  The built purpose was usually the purpose that remained.  Not exclusively, but generally, in Leeds a friend of mine had a bedsit term which was converted from a house. However now there seems to be a massive trend towards subdivision of houses into flats.  Maybe I hadn't noticed it before, but there are certainly more flats converted from houses on the rental market than before.

Nice work on the M1 upgrade.  I drove past Luton last night with barely a notice as the road slipped by.  Luton would present a problem on every journey south, as airport bound traffic would clog up the artery south.  Now however the M1 is just busy.  Whereas previously I would drive quite happily at 80 down this road, I am now rarely venturing over 65 because the clear lane has gone.  Speed has reduced generally, however peole are driving closer together! The two second gap is definitely a thing of the past.  Trying to maintain this gap meant that my speed was much reduced.  

To be honest I was quite nervous driving this week. The combination of much narrower roads, and higher speeds, with people driving very close to ones rear tend to make one nervous.  I know statistically the roads here are much safer in the UK than back in Australia.  I'm wondering if it's the increased sense of risk bought on by the proximity to everyone that makes the difference.  I for one was much more vigilant.  

This has been a week where I have felt a bit like a stranger in my own land. I'm hoping things normalise a little over the next week, here's hoping.