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People Are Sharing Examples Of ‘Urban Hell’ That Look Like A Dystopian Movie But Are Sadly Real (45 New Pics)
Examples of spectacular architecture can really take one's breath away; but so can instances of dwellings far from dazzling. With the population growing at an unstoppable rate, accommodating all of people’s needs is by no means an easy task, which can lead to ideas that look like proper solutions to some, but to others, they might look like ‘Urban Hell’.
Dedicated to “the downsides of modern development”, in their own words, the ‘Urban Hell’ community sheds light on some of the most depressing-looking buildings, poor infrastructure decisions, and constructions that simply don’t match the environment, among other debacles. We have put some of them on this list for you today, so scroll down to browse them and see for yourself how unfortunate some architectural decisions can be.
To learn more about the dos and don'ts when it comes to modern development and architecture, Bored Panda turned to an expert, the CEO and founder of ‘Architecture Hunter’, Amanda Ferber, who was kind enough to answer a few of our questions. Scroll down to find her insight in the text below.
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
Urban Art In Belgrade
Pedantic Panda 2 years ago
Mr city eats nature.This is cool and relevant if I'm reading it right.
RELATED:
#2
Hong Kong's Dismal Cage Homes House Thousands Of People
#3
Light Pollution By A Single Building In Mumbai (It Was 1 Am When This Pic Was Taken)
#4
Delhi, India
Michael P (Perthaussieguy) 2 years ago
With 169 billionaires in India, they should be shamed into spending some of their wealth in cleaning up their own country
#5
Homeless In Phoenix, Arizona - The Hottest City In The USA
Mark Fuller 2 years ago
An utter disgrace for one of the most developed and wealthiest countries on the planet. I remember when I went to San Francisco and witnessed more homeless on a single block than I had witnessed in my entire life living in the UK.
#6
Trees, I See
Multa Nocte 2 years ago
I am a too embarrassed to suggest alternate uses for these decorations when the city is through with them. 🙀
#7
Contrary To Popular Belief, The Belgian Coast's Real Estate Did Survive To The Two World Wars. Its Cultural Heritage Was Destroyed By Real Estate Developers' Greed And Public Officials' Lack Of Care
#8
Las Vegas’s Underground Homeless
Brittania Kelli 2 years ago
What this photo doesn't show is that these tunnels under the city are flash flood tunnels and countless homeless people have drowned over the years.
#9
Dadaab In Kenya. World's Largest Refugee Camp. Stretches Over 20 Miles
Michael P (Perthaussieguy) 2 years ago
The logistics of food, water and sanitation must be horrendous
#10
Mansion On Top Of Building In Bangalore. Dear God
Anyone-for-tea? 2 years ago
Structurally this must be unsafe surely? Aren’t the floors all designed below to just hold themselves? Or was the building below built in mind that a great big house was going to be built on top of this? You couldn’t pay me to go in that building!
#11
The Neue Elbbrücke Bridge In Hamburg. The Original Design Was Completed In 1887 And Featured Two Wonderful Gothic Gateways, Torn Down In 1959 To Add An Additional Lane
#12
The Problem There Are Still People Living In Such Buildings!
#13
Chinese Ghost Town Of Mansions Reclaimed By Farmers
Lyone Fein 2 years ago
Good for them! I hope they also live in the houses, or at least use them for the animals.
#14
Skopje, North Macedonia. Consistently One Of The Most Polluted (Air Quality) Cities In Europe
#15
Covering The Slums With Green Walls
Lyone Fein 2 years ago
Was this just prior to destroying them? Thousands lost their homes and all of their belongings just before the last G20 summit because the Indian government beautified Delhi by destroying the slums.
#16
Come Enjoy The Lovely Beach In Alexandria, Egypt!
#17
Liebian Building - A 121-Meter Skyscraper With A Waterfall In The City Of Guiyang, China's Guizhou Province
#18
The "Other Side" Of The Pyramids Of Giza
#19
Bolton, England
#20
This Elementary School In Ohio Can Only Be Reached By Car - It Might Be Normal For Us For Is An Abomination By European / Asian Standards
#21
Residential Space In Noida, India
#22
Los Angeles Is Also A Concrete Jungle
#23
I Wonder How One Can Live In A Mansion Like These Without Feeling Immense Guilt
#24
China Once Tried To Build A City That Would Be An Exact Copy Of Paris. Even An Exact Copy Of The Eiffel Tower Was Built. Only On A Smaller Scale: The Copy Was 108 Meters High. The Town Was Designed For 10,000 People. Now It Mainly Attracts Poor Tourists Who Cannot Afford The Real Paris
LastButNotLeast 2 years ago
I mean... China has such and Amazing history... Beautiful traditions... Why they Need to Copy a culture that Is not theirs? Don't understand
#25
Housing Complex In Malaysia
Indigojinn 2 years ago
I love in one. Horror be external design. But inside, high security, Wi-Fi, AC, gym, shops, library, coffee shops and very low rent.
#26
The Largest Stack Interchange In North America, Entire LA Neighborhoods Were Destroyed
#27
Tokyo, Japan
Mat O'Dowd 2 years ago
I've been to Tokyo twice. Many pictures make it seem like some sort of dystopian buildings hell overflowing with humans. In reality, it is a very pleasant metropolis, with a lot of trees many parks, and mostly low rise buildings. In fact Tokyo is mostly residential when you get away from the district train stations.
#28
Lancaster New "City" (General Trias, Cavite, Philippines.)
#29
What's The Point Of Having An Interchange That Size In The Middle Of The City, Dubai, Uae
#30
New Delhi, India
#31
Abandoned Building Occupied By Artists And Anarchists. São Paulo, Brazil
#32
These Apartments I Saw In Barcelona
#33
Moscow, Russia
#34
Houston, Texas. So Many Places In The US Look Like This
Michael P (Perthaussieguy) 2 years ago
Sadly, I could show you photos of some Australia towns that also look similar to this :(
#35
Aquatar A Water Park In Qatar
#36
"Infrastructural Development" In Past Two Decades. [mumbai, India]
!["Infrastructural Development" In Past Two Decades. [mumbai, India]](https://static.boredpanda.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/651410ee92a61_kh74yog4q2ob1__700.jpg "\"Infrastructural Development\" In Past Two Decades. [mumbai, India]")
#37
Since We're Posting Photos Of Cairo, Here Is One I Took While Landing For A Connecting Flight
#38
Guys, We Just Need To Build Another Ring Road. This Time It’ll Fix The Traffic Guys, I Promise. Guys?
LovingKnuckle 2 years ago
In houston it can take over an hour to get to Houston. It’s basically the size of all of Connecticut
#39
UK Newbuilds
Red Reilly 2 years ago
My friends Dad owns a construction company, (It's all his Fault!), and sometime my friend works on site to make some extra money. From his stories. I will NEVER live in a newbuild in the UK.
#40
Henderson, Vegas, USA
#41
NYC Apartment The Broker Showed Me
Melody Shanahan-Kluth 2 years ago
wait - look, yes, oh boy, there IS a bit of green - on the left side of that fence - see it?
#42
Huge Screen Set Up In A Small Town Of Just Under 15k Population, UK
#43
Who Wants To Live Under A Freeway (Sydney)?
#44
Taiwan Government Does Not Build Sidewalks. Taoyuan
#45
Beijing Man Builds Rock Villa On Top Of Apartment Tower
#46
Mumbai Is Filled With Outdated, Poorly Constructed And Ugly Buildings And One Of Those Buildings Just Collapsed Due To 2 Weeks Of Rain
#47
China’s Shared Bikes Graveyards
#48
Saw This Post On Fb - Residential Complex In Doha, Qatar
#49
Hated By Costa Ricans… This Brutalist Azkaban-Like Concrete Brick Houses The Parliament Of A Nation
#50
Gem Of Architecture Found In Center City Philadelphia
#51
Tehran, Iran
Forrest Hobbs 2 years ago
Ah yes - 1953, the year Mohammad Mosaddegh, the last genuinely democratically elected leader of Iran, was thrown out in a US and UK backed coup. If you want to know what went wrong, look no further. Mosaddegh was doing a good job.
#52
This Is What Happens When The Owner Of One Half Of A Townhouse Refuses To Sell
#53
Honey, I'm Gonna Be A Little Late
Lyone Fein 2 years ago
This happens all the time. Can't tell what's stopping traffic. Probably an accident? I have to wonder why these folks aren't taking trains to and from work.
#54
Homeless Encampment In The Scorching Desert Heat Of Phoenix, USA
#55
Mayne This Fits In Here
Penguin Panda Pop 2 years ago
"And don't it always seem to go, that you don't know what you've got til it's gone.."
#56
Controversial Saudi Arabia’s $1 Trillion Linear City Concept
Michael P (Perthaussieguy) 2 years ago
I don't think they have an over population problem, so who will be using it? Will they suddenly be generous and open it up to the worlds refugees? (/s)
#57
Tokyo's Wrong Change
Forrest Hobbs 2 years ago
I don't like the replacement, but what's so great about a Japanese version of an early to mid 20th century English mock Tudor building? A fake of a fake, so to speak? Admittedly, the proportions and patterning are pleasant, but still.
#58
Jail
#59
I Dont Want To Be Here
#60
The Destruction Of American Cities - Detroit Edition
Lyone Fein 2 years ago
Or we could call it the construction of the interstate highway system. Even though the underlying purpose of Eisenhower's interstate system was the easy transportation of military personnel and equipment around the country, the highways have made American life easier and of higher quality for more of the population. The number one thing that the highways make possible is moving food and consumer goods. So that people living in northern places, Detroit for example, can eat fresh produce all winter long.
#61
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
#63
Montparnasse Tower In France. Also Known As The Middle Finger Of Paris As It’s The Only Tall Building In That Area And Sticks Out Like A Middle Finger. Everyone In Paris Hates It And I Believe It’s Had Multiple Petitions To Rip It Down
François Bouzigues 2 years ago
It is really no so bad. I´d recommend all my fellow pandas to have a tea at the 48th floor restaurant.
#64
Boston City Hall, A Building So Monstrously Ugly That The Mayor Of Boston Cried "What The Hell Is That" Upon Seeing The Model Of It, It Also Got Voted The Ugliest Building In The World That's How Bad It Is
#65
Paharganj, Delhi
kitten levels tokyo 2 years ago
Don’t be randomly swinging your scythe above your head while visiting Delhi.
#66
Austin, Texas (2006)
David A Paterson 2 years ago
This is a new housing development, they always look bad. This one is much better than most because most are so darn maze-like as to trap a rat. This'll look a lot better in 30 years when the trees have grown.
#67
I Walk Past This Almost Daily. Embassy Of Kuwait In Tokyo
#68
Mumbai Highway Project
Forrest Hobbs 2 years ago
This one's got an excuse. Mumbai's built on islands next to the sea. You either do something like this, or build on that lovely green park-type land to the right.
#69
Tekesi Bagua City, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, China
Lyone Fein 2 years ago
This is the Muslim region of northwest China. I'd say this shows excellent urban planning.
#70
A Poor Area Of Osaka, Japan
#71
Kissing Balconies
#72
What Where They Thinking..?
dan martyr 2 years ago
That’s Trellick Tower in London. Brilliant example of social housing design. So much so that the social tenants have been kicked out and replaced with wealthy Londoners https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trellick_Tower
#73
View From My Hotel. Hiroshima, Japan
#74
Hashima Island - Nagasaki, Japan
#75
Jacksonville, Florida - Ending Of I-10
#76
Amsterdam You Messed This One Up
#77
Highway 401, Ontario Canada
#78
In Saudi Arabia, 10 Years Ago, The Jeddah Tower Was Laid - The First Building Above 1 Km ... But In 2018 The Construction Was Frozen, And We Have Not Seen Any Progress Since Then
#79
This Apartment Building Near Downtown Winnipeg Looks Appalling
#80
A Trap Aim For Blind People, Taiwan
Forrest Hobbs 2 years ago
That looks like like fairly standard barriers to stop cyclists and other wheeled vehicles getting through. A problem for blind people yes, but the sort of thing you'd be used to if you live there.
#81
Most Us Cities Are Shockingly Ugly - Tulsa, Oklahoma
#82
This Is A School In My Neighborhood. Yes, It's A Charter School, And Yes It's Sheet Metal
#83
Penn Station, New York
#84
Gorgeous Historical Building Used As Parking Lot, Napoli, Italy
#85
Large Building Full Of Girls Bars In Japan
#86
A Shopping Mall, Not Even The Ugliest One In My City, I Just Particularly Furiously Hate This One. Yes, It's Made To Look Like A Barcode On Purpose. Saint Petersburg, Russia
#87
Los Angeles, California. Los Angeles Has The Perfect Climate For Walking, But They Decided To Ruin It And Made It Car Centric Af
Forrest Hobbs 2 years ago (edited)
Many of us from temperate climates consider Los Angeles to be far, far too hot for walking.
#88
Dubai
#89
The Chaotic Street Layout Of Moscow, Russia
#90
Finally Managed To Ruin A Roundabout
#91
Weird Building In Guizhou
#92
Aerial Photo Of Cape Coral, Florida
#93
Commie Blocks Don't Have To Be Ugly. Here's Two Such Blocks In My City, One Renovated The Other Not
#94
South Florida, USA - One Of The Few Places In The US With A Tropical Climate, And This Is What They Decide To Do With It…
Bear Panda 2 years ago
they're lucky to be able to accommodate their population appropriately. i'm in northeast and they keep building houses but cannot expand most roadways. it's a clusterfuck, to say the least.
#95
The Amount Of Beautiful Nature In North America That’s Getting Ruined By Suburban Development Like This.. Is Terrible (Salt Lake City, USA)
#96
This Is Hell To Me
Lyone Fein 2 years ago
Those people have a lot of space compared to some of the others on this list.
#97
Cincinnati 1950s vs. Today
#98
Toledo Spain vs. Toledo Ohio
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What do you think ?
Bekki Sala 2 years ago
More than half of these won't open to even look at. Kind of getting annoyed, not gonna lie
Dill 2 years ago
Is that the app? The website never seems to have that problem.
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Angela B 2 years ago
As I scroll through these shaking my head, thinking about the paperstraws, resuable items, recycling, composting and ALL the other B******T that we are (globally) encouraged to do to "save the planet". Until countries and governments and the highest polluting companies take a good hard damned well look at S**T like this.....the planet is doomed. Downvote me if you like, but this, THIS, is killing the planet and my bamboo cutlery is not gonna dig us out of here, is it?
Janet L 2 years ago
In the UK you will be unable to buy anything but an electric car and no gas boilers, only heat exchange pumps within the next few years… that’s just whistling in the wind when you see the indifference to environmental concerns in these countries
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Bekki Sala 2 years ago
More than half of these won't open to even look at. Kind of getting annoyed, not gonna lie
Dill 2 years ago
Is that the app? The website never seems to have that problem.
Load More Replies... Angela B 2 years ago
As I scroll through these shaking my head, thinking about the paperstraws, resuable items, recycling, composting and ALL the other B******T that we are (globally) encouraged to do to "save the planet". Until countries and governments and the highest polluting companies take a good hard damned well look at S**T like this.....the planet is doomed. Downvote me if you like, but this, THIS, is killing the planet and my bamboo cutlery is not gonna dig us out of here, is it?
Janet L 2 years ago
In the UK you will be unable to buy anything but an electric car and no gas boilers, only heat exchange pumps within the next few years… that’s just whistling in the wind when you see the indifference to environmental concerns in these countries
Load More Replies... Related on Bored Panda
