4a and b - Urban form, megacities and world cities

What's urban form? And what is the difference between urban form in HIC's and NEE's?

Physical characteristics of settlements eg: shape/size

In NEE's the speed and scale of urbanisation means they can't develop sustainably

Name 5 physical and 5 human things that can change an areas urban form (urban morphology)?

• Physical - Relief, weather/climate, dry points, gap towns, proximity to water eg: Steep slopes limit where buildings and roads can be built. This often leads to terraced housing, winding roads, or development concentrated on flatter land like in Rio De Janeiro

• Human - Proximity to services, transport links, energy, water, trade, government policies eg: Economic activity in Manchester Cotton industry led to: Dense terraced housing near factories, Canals and railways shaping the city→ Compact, industrial urban form. Distance to CBD with reference to PLVI model.

Explain the PLVI diagram? (Peak land value intersection)

Peak land value intersection - highest land value at the CBD decreasing until the secondary land value peaks at the suburbs. This is distance decay.

What was urban form like in pre industrial cities?

Traditional features with historical buildings and high class residence at the center eg: York

These places were built with winding roads which were made for pedestrians to commute between town and markets not cars. Central marketplace or religious building (e.g. church or cathedral) as the focal point.

What was urban form like in modern cities?

• Rapid outward expansion due to industrialisation and population growth.

• Distinct land-use zones develop (Dominant CBD with distance decay moving away, industrial areas, working-class housing).

• Grid-iron street patterns and more planned layouts in new areas.

• Factories and railways dominate the urban landscape.

• Dense terraced housing built near factories for workers.

• Suburban growth begins as wealthier residents move away from polluted industrial centres.

eg: Birmingham

What was urban form like in post industrial cities?

eg: Tokyo.

• Decentralised and fragmented urban form with multiple centres (edge cities). Could be described as an urban mosaic with a more chaotic and looser structure with high tech corridors and a less dominant CBD so less tied to 1 location

• Redevelopment and gentrification of inner-city areas - Spectacular architecture

• Mixed-use developments combining retail, residential and leisure spaces.

• Urban regeneration projects transforming former industrial land (brownfield sites).

• Growth of out-of-town shopping centres, business parks and retail parks.

• Greater focus on environmental quality, public spaces and cultural facilities.

What is Bid rent theory and how is it challenged today?

An economic factor affecting urban form. Shows us that areas further away from the cbd have lower land values and so tend to be residential, areas nearer the cbd have higher land value and so consist of mainly high rise office blocks and shops.

However, online shopping has changed this decreasing the land value of shops in the cbd compared to residential areas

What's a world city?

A city with global importance and acts as a major center for culture business finance and transport

What are the characteristics of a world city?

• Multi-functional infrastructure offering the best legal, medical and entertainment facilities in the country

• High quality educational facilities

• Considerable decision making power at a global level

• Centres of new ideas, culture, innovation, economics and politics

• Existence of financial headquarters + headquarters of TNC’s

• Centres of media and communications for global networks

Why have megacities emerged, where are the world's biggest megacities and what does the UN predict by 2030

Globalisation and economic competition, urban resurgence, government ( SEZ with tax breaks in Chinese cities) and geographical location. Perception of a better life in the city → mass migration

Asia

By 2030 41 megacities are predicted

How can megacities be a force for good?

• politically more liberal + centres of innovation where solutions to global issues are found and trialled. Large numbers of urban dwellers may also increase pressure for change

• economy getting 2-3 times more GDP

• Centers of technology - London leads in AI eg: fintech, healthtech, cybersecurity

• public transport helping the environment

• Less environmentally damaging to provide water, electricity etc to a densely settled urban population than a dispersed rural population

• better access to healthcare + employment

How can megacities be bad?

• waste disposal issues

• Mumbia high levels of congestion and pollution which can effect health

• higher risk of floods - increased urbanisation → more impermeable surfaces

• derelict land due to rural-urban migration

Name a world city and a reason why it is a world city?

New York - jobs, Olympics, hosts the UN headquarters and a hub for fashion

Name the urban policy from 1979-91 and explain about it?

• Property led initiative and creation of entrepreneurial culture.

• Greater emphasis placed on the role of the private sector to regenerate urban areas and people were encouraged to spend money on buying land, building infrastructure and marketing to attract private investment.

• Eg: derelict land grants, enterprise zones.

Name the regeneration policy from 1980's and explain about it? Pros and cons too

• UDC's (urban development corporations) aiming to regenerate inner-city areas

• They were generally made up of people from the local community who were encouraged to spend money on buying land, building infrastructure and marketing to attract private investment. Funding came from the government.

• Effective in attracting new businesses to run-down areas and improving the environment. Created 190,000 jobs nationally

• Local people complained they had little involvement in the process and the new housing and jobs didn’t benefit them

• Eg: London Docklands development corporation (LDDC)

Name the regeneration policy from 1990's and explain about it? Pros and cons too.

• City challenge which is cities competing with each other for government regeneration grants. Aimed to tackle social, economic and environmental problems

• The “best” schemes were awarded the grants and it was a local authority scheme which created partnerships between the public and private sector

• The judging resulted in more successful schemes + gave equal importance to people and values. Reclaimed 2,000 ha of derelict land + improved 40,000 houses + created 53,000 jobs

• However, money was lost in local authorities preparing bids which didn’t win funding + resources were spread thinly over large areas

• Eg: Hulme city - crime ↓ ~40%, 3,000–4,000 new/refurbished homes

Name the urban policy from 2000's and explain about it?

• New Deal for Communities was a 10 year regeneration programme designed to transform the 39 most deprived areas. The focus was on communities being “at the heart of the regeneration”.

• Improvements to crime, healthcare etc and gaps between local and national authority levels had generally narrowed due to allocations of funding

• However, little change with education and worklessness

• Eg: Devonport Regeneration Company Plymouth