For my hypothesis it is the three zones of residential properties (lower and upper class housing, and the commuter zone), which are of greatest interest. I should be able to detect improving house quality the further I get from the C.B.D.
- The Hoyt Model
Hoyt emphasized the important role of transport routes. He said certain functions would concentrate along canals or main roads-especially industry, for example, Trafford Park along the Manchester Ship Canal. Thus his model has distinct sectors. There is industry along transport routes, with low class housing near the industry. The land use is arranged in wedges or sectors, which radiate from the town or city centre (C.B.D). We can assume that once a particular type of land use establishes itself in an area it attracts similar activities (e.g. industry) and repels dissimilar ones (e.g. high status housing).
Homer Hoyt observed that it was common for low-income households to be found in close proximity to railroad lines, and commercial establishments. Hoyt believed that cities would grow in wedge-shaped patterns, or sectors, radiating from the C.B.D and operated on major transportation routes. This would mean that higher levels of access, would give higher land prices. Thus many commercial functions would remain in the C.B.D, but manufacturing activity would develop in a wedge surrounding transport routes. Residential land use patterns would also grow in wedge-shaped patterns with a sector of lower-class houses bordering the manufacturing sector (traffic, noise, and pollution making these less desirable to live in) and sectors of middle and higher-class housing located away from industrial areas. In many respects Hoyt’s sector model is simply a concentric zone model, but accounted for the impact of transportation systems on accessibility.
Hypotheses
My hypothesis is “Environmental and housing quality increase with distance away from the C.B.D.” On the basis of the ideas of Burgess and Hoyt it is possible to identify a series of sub-hypotheses that I need to investigate in order to prove or disprove my main hypothesis.
I have constructed seven sub-hypotheses:
a) “Environmental quality increases with distance from the C.B.D”
b) “Housing quality increases with distance from the C.B.D”
c) “Traffic decreases with distance from the C.B.D”
d) “House age decreases with distance from the C.B.D”
e) “There are more open spaces away from the C.B.D”
f) “People prefer to live in the suburbs to the C.B.D”
g) “House prices increase away from the C.B.D”
After my trip to Altrincham I was able to prove or disprove these hypotheses. I found out my results by many different methods, ranging from asking the public to asking estate agents. My first sub-hypothesis, “Environmental quality increases with distance from the C.B.D,” agrees with Burgess, and also agrees with Altrincham. I found out that in Altrincham town centre (C.B.D) the environment was very low. This was probably due to the fact that there are railways, and heavy congestion. This would cause pollution, which is terrible for the environment. The C.B.D is the main area for business, so it does not matter about the quality of environment. Not many people live in the C.B.D, so there is no point in having a high quality of environment. There are shops and it is an area open to the public. The environmental quality gets higher as you move away from the town centre. This is because the pavement and roads are very good with very little litter. There is little dereliction, no unpleasant noises, and very importantly plenty of trees, shrubs, and grassy areas.
My second sub-hypothesis, “House quality increases with distance from the C.B.D,” again agrees with the Burgess model, and also agrees with Altrincham. I found out that the quality of housing in the C.B.D was low, but as one progressed the housing quality began to improve. Of course it did not increase perfectly, but on the whole my investigation proved my sub-hypothesis. This result is probably because in the town centre (C.B.D) the majority of the housing was terraced, and in general the facilities of the house (e.g. parking) was pretty poor. I noticed that on the outskirts of Altrincham, near Bowdon, the housing quality was the highest, but in the C.B.D the housing quality has the lowest housing quality.
Altrincham agrees that, “Traffic decreases with distance from the C.B.D.” From my investigations I found out that as one left the C.B.D (Altrincham town centre), the number of cars on the road began to decrease. I also noticed that the busiest part of the town was the town centre because this is the most accessible point. It is accessible because most town centres are usually Route Nodes. By this we mean that most roads meet in the centre. The C.B.D is also the location of the main shops and offices and these attract customers. Consequently this area should be the busiest. There is a less population density the further out one goes from the C.B.D, so therefore the amount of traffic should increase as one approaches the C.B.D.
Altrincham supports “House age decreases with distance from the C.B.D,” The oldest houses were in the centre of Altrincham, and also some of the roads surrounding the centre had old houses. As we move out from the C.B.D the age of the houses decline. For example in Bowdon there was a mix of post-war houses and modern ones. The houses in the town centre are mainly terraces, with no gardens or garages.
Altrincham agrees that, “There are more open spaces way from the C.B.D.” There were no open spaces in or around the C.B.D. As one progresses more open spaces become visible, and by the time we reach the outskirts there are many open spaces.
To answer my penultimate sub-hypothesis, “People prefer to live in the suburbs to the C.B.D it was necessary for me to ask the public, in the form of a questionnaire. I found out from this that people in Altrincham prefer to live in the suburbs to the C.B.D. This is probably because most people want privacy, and peace and quiet. In the C.B.D it is very noisy, with all the traffic, and in general it is an unpleasant place to live, but in the suburbs it is very fresh, and peaceful.
My final sub-hypothesis, “House prices increase away from the C.B.D,” again supports Altrincham. To find this out I had to go and collect data from estate agents situated in Altrincham’s C.B.D. I found out that the houses in the C.B.D were not that expensive, but as one progressed out to the suburbs the house prices increased. Therefore the most expensive houses are found the furthest point out from the C.B.D.
My main hypothesis, “Environmental and housing quality increase with distance away from the C.B.D,” can now be answered. From answering my sub-hypotheses I can now prove my main hypothesis. The environmental and housing quality in the C.B.D is low but as one went further out from the C.B.D the quality improved until eventually the highest quality was found. I performed a survey when I went to Altrincham in order to find all of these results, otherwise it would be impossible to get accurate answers to my hypotheses.
I decided to do this project because I was interested to find out if the urban/settlement models did apply to a random town. We know Burgess and Hoyt applied their models to towns and cities of their choice, so I wanted to find out if their models applied to a town of my choice. My choice to do my project on Altrincham was because it is a perfect size to conduct a survey of housing quality and environmental quality in a single day without being too small. Also if I would have picked a town that is in close proximity to Manchester then the town might be affected by Manchester’s own settlement patterns. Altrincham is a sufficient distance away from Manchester for it not to be affected. I expected Altrincham to follow the theory of Burgess. I speculated that the environmental and housing quality would increase with distance from the C.B.D. Basically I expected everything to improve the further I went out from the C.B.D.
The purpose of this project is to investigate my hypothesis, “Environmental and housing quality increase with distance away from the C.B.D,” by undertaking a field trip to Altrincham. The aim of my project is to analyse the town’s urban characteristics and to compare them with the patterns, as predicted by classic models of urban structure. I used the models of Burgess and Hoyt.
Altrincham
Altrincham is a town situated on the western side of the Manchester conurbation. It lies some eight miles south of Manchester. Before it grew in size Altrincham was just a small market town that was originally founded in 1292. In the late nineteenth century the rich of the Victorian population started to live in the suburbs. This was mainly due to the fact that railways were improved, so people could commute to work using this form of transport.
Nowadays, Altrincham acts as a centre for retail for the surrounding areas, and has a high commuter population. In general it is a wealthy town, and a lot of people visit Altrincham town centre for many different reasons. Altrincham town centre has a lot to offer, ranging from expensive shops, to fast food restaurants, so all types of people are found in Altrincham.
On the following page there is a location map, which shows exactly where Altrincham is. Also from this map one can see Altrincham in relation to its surroundings.
