MEDC’s
Urbanisation is an increase in the proportion of people living in urban compared to rural areas. Urbanisation increases with development and industrialisation, and is today taking place most rapidly in .
One way geographers study cities is by looking at different types of land-use within them and constructing models of urban development, such as the Burgess or concentric zone model.
In there is a tendency for people and businesses to relocate away from city-centres to the urban-rural fringe, which encroaches on the surrounding countryside in a process called urban sprawl.
Central business district
The land in urban areas is used for many different purposes:
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Leisure and recreation may include open land, e.g. parks or built facilities such as sports centres
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Residential - the building of houses and flats.
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Transport - road and rail networks, stations and airports.
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Business and commerce - the building of offices, shops and banks.
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Industry - factories, warehouses and small production centres.
The Central Business District (CBD) in the city centre is where most business and commerce is located.
The CBD is easily identified by the following features:
- high/multi-storey buildings
- expensive land values
- shops are department stores (comparison shops) or specialist shops, like jewellers
- modern shopping malls and pedestrian precincts
- cultural/historical buildings, museums and castles
- offices, finance, banks, administration, town hall (business sector)
- bus and railway stations (transport centres)
- multi-storey car parks
The CBD is located in the centre because it is:
- a central location for road/railways to converge
- the most accessible location for workers
- accessible to most people for shops and businesses
To help you remember how to identify a CBD, think of a city you know and in your exam give named examples for the features listed above.
Urban land use models
It is possible in many cities to identify zones where you can find a particular type of land use - eg, a residential zone. Often these zones have developed because of a combination of economic and social factors. In some cases planners may have tried to separate out some land uses, e.g. an airport is separated from a large housing estate.
In the past geographers have tried to put together models of land use to show how a 'typical' city is laid out. One of the most famous of these is the Burgess or concentric zone model.
This model is based on the idea that land values are highest in the centre of a town or city. This is because competition is high in the central parts of the settlement. This leads to high-rise, high-density buildings being found near the CBD, with low-density, sparse developments on the edge of the town or city, as in the diagram below.
As with many models in geography, there are limits to the Burgess model:
- The model is now quite old and was developed before the advent of mass car ownership.
- New trends have developed in working and housing trends since the model was developed. Many people now choose to live and work outside the city on the urban fringe - a phenomenon which is not reflected in the Burgess model.
- Every city is different. No 'typical city' model is perfect, because there is really no such thing as a typical city!
Another urban model is The Hoyt model. This is based on the circles on the Burgess model, but adds sectors of similar land uses concentrated in parts of the city. Notice how some zones, eg the factories/industry zone, radiate out from the CBD. This is probably following the line of a main road or a railway.
Urban sprawl and counter-urbanisation
In many MEDCs people are moving out of urban areas and on the edge of towns:
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The area where the countryside meets the city is called the . Housing developments in these areas are often called suburbs.
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Environmentalists and groups are concerned that as more and more people move to the rural-urban fringe, urban areas will spread into the countryside. This is called urban sprawl.
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In the UK, green belts are used to protect areas of countryside from urban sprawl. A green belt is an area of green land around a large city where development is restricted.
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Some people are moving out of the city altogether and in rural areas. The movement of people from urban areas to the countryside is called counter-urbanisation.
As well as the movement of people out of urban areas, businesses and services have also moved:
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For example, out-of-town shopping centres, such as the Trafford Centre near Manchester, have been built on the edge of the city close to motorway connections.
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Retail parks have also developed on the edge of large urban areas. These provide a range of shops and entertainment services (e.g. multi-screen cinemas) in one location.
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Business parks and science parks are also a feature of the . Areas such as the Cambridge Science Park offer high skilled jobs in a spacious, semi rural setting that is well connected to major road and rail routes. This can be an attractive pull factor for potential employees.
Many people are concerned about the impact of relocating shopping and employment to the edge of the city. This trend could lead to greater , pollution from cars and the decline of the .
Housing demand
Social and are leading to a greater demand for housing. People are living longer, and choosing to marry later, and in recent years there has been a rise in the number of single-parent families. The result is an ever larger number of smaller households, all requiring accommodation.
However, building new, affordable homes in urban areas is difficult. Land values are very high and land is in short supply:
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Some developers are building on sites that have been built on before. These are called brownfield sites.
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Other developers are building homes on the edge of the city on sites. Land here is cheaper but greenfield development can cause conflict with local people and create problems.
Inequalities in urban areas
Inequalities exist in all urban areas. Inequality means extreme differences between poverty and wealth, as well as in people's well-being and access to things like jobs, housing, and education. Inequalities may occur in:
- Housing provision
- Access to services
- Access to open land
- Safety and security
Often people who live in inner-city areas experience a poor quality of life. This is because this is a zone of older housing and declining industry. The diagram below compares the quality of life for someone living in an outer London borough with that of someone who lives in an inner London borough.
Governments and often step in to help run-down inner-city areas. Redevelopments such as London's Docklands may improve the physical environment of the area and improve the quality of housing. However, it can also create even greater inequalities because the local residents may not be able to afford to live there anymore. Often the old industrial jobs are replaced by skilled jobs and new people move to the area.
Counter-urbanisation
Many people are moving out of cities to areas. This is called counter-urbanisation. People often choose to move out of the city in order to enjoy a better quality of life in the open space of the countryside.
However, counter-urbanisation can have an impact upon both rural areas and urban areas. Some of the issues raised by counter-urbanisation are shown below:
Creating sustainable cities in MEDCs
Many people are working towards trying to make cities more . A sustainable city offers a good quality of life to current residents but doesn't reduce the opportunities for future residents to enjoy a good quality of life.
A sustainable city will grow at a sustainable rate and use resources in a sustainable way.
Think of the town or city you live in, or a city that is near where you live. Could it be more sustainable?
Do people walk, cycle or use public transport rather than cars? Are there enough safe open spaces, services and cultural amenities for everyone? Is there enough investment in the city centre? Is there a strong sense of community? Is waste recycled? Is there affordable housing for everyone? Are homes energy-efficient? Do they use renewable energy?
LEDC’s
Urban growth in LEDCs
LEDCs tend to have a low level of . However many of them are urbanising at a rapid rate.
This means that they have fewer people living in towns and cities compared to the number of people living in the countryside - but that this situation is changing fast. Cities in LEDCs are growing rapidly. In fact it's likely that in the near future all the world's largest cities will be in LEDCs.
The graph below shows rates of urban growth for a range of countries. As well as urban growth rates, the table also gives you the gross domestic product (GDP) per capita for each country. GDP per capita is a way of measuring a country's wealth. GDP is the income of the entire country, and per capita means per person, so:
Rural to urban migration
One of the causes of rapid urban growth in many LEDCs is rural to urban migration - ie, people moving from the countryside to the city. The movement of people from rural to urban areas can be explained by looking at .
Push factors are things like crop failure, drought and unemployment - they encourage people to leave the countryside. Pull factors are things like education, healthcare and jobs which attract people to the city.
The animation shows examples of push and pull factors. Can you think of any others reasons why people move?
Impact of migration on urban and rural populations
Most migrants to the city are young people of working age. This means that birth rates in the city are high. Moreover better health facilities in cities mean that death rates there are falling. This combination of high birth rates and falling death rates means that cities have a high rate of natural increase, so their populations grow faster than those of rural areas.
If lots of young migrants leave rural areas, the countryside is at risk of decline. It is often young and elderly dependants that are left behind in rural communities whilst young workers leave for the city. This places pressure on rural areas.
Urban land use in LEDCs
LEDCs have similar land-use needs to MEDCs, but the pattern of land use in urban areas is different:
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Both MEDC and LEDC cities have a - often the oldest part of the city.
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In LEDCs the poorest housing is found on the edge of the city - in contrast to MEDC cities whose suburban fringe is very often a place of high quality housing. The areas of poor quality housing found on the edge of cities in LEDCs are called squatter settlements or shanty towns.
Although every LEDC city has its own characteristics (like those in MEDCs) geographers put together models to illustrate a 'typical' LEDC city. Such a model is shown below:
