Geography (9696) | Urban trends and issues of urbanisation

Urban Trends and Issues of Urbanisation (9696 Core Human Geography)

Hello Geographers! Welcome to one of the most dynamic and relevant sections of the course: understanding how our cities are changing and the huge challenges that come with rapid urban growth.
This chapter connects directly to the world you live in. By the end of these notes, you will be able to explain why global cities look the way they do, why land is so expensive in the center, and how countries are tackling the massive housing and infrastructure problems that urbanisation creates. Let's dive in!

1. Urban Growth and the Process of Urbanisation

It's essential to distinguish between two related but different terms:

Key Definitions:

Urbanisation: This is the process where an increasing proportion (percentage) of the total population lives in urban areas.
Urban Growth: This is the physical increase in the size of an urban area and the absolute increase in the number of people living there.

Did you know? For the first time in history, over half the world's population lives in urban areas!

Causes and Trends of Urbanisation (LICs, MICs and HICs)

The causes of urbanisation are best understood using the concept of Push and Pull Factors, often focusing on Rural-to-Urban Migration:

A. Urbanisation in Low Income Countries (LICs) and Middle Income Countries (MICs)

This is where urbanisation is happening fastest today.
• Pull Factors (The "City Magnet"):
  • Better economic opportunities (jobs in manufacturing and tertiary sectors).
  • Perceived better services (healthcare, education).
  • Greater access to infrastructure (electricity, water, sanitation).
• Push Factors (The "Rural Repel"):
  • Land tenure issues (farmers lose land).
  • Low agricultural productivity and rural poverty.
  • Climatic hazards (droughts push people away).

Consequence: This results in rapid, often unplanned, growth and the proliferation of squatter settlements.

B. Urbanisation in High Income Countries (HICs)

HICs largely finished their main urbanisation phase during the Industrial Revolution (18th and 19th centuries). Their rates of urbanisation are now slow or stable, and they experience more complex movements *within* or *away from* existing urban areas.

Key Takeaway:

Urbanisation is a global trend, but LICs/MICs are experiencing the fastest growth primarily due to economic opportunities and rural push factors, leading to major challenges in managing growth.

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2. Changing Dynamics in HICs: Counterurbanisation and Re-urbanisation (6.2)

Once a city is highly urbanised (like in HICs), people start moving in and out in more subtle, complex ways.

Counterurbanisation (The Retreat)

This describes the movement of people and employment from large urban areas to smaller settlements and rural areas.
Analogy: Imagine you move from the busy capital city to a small, quiet town nearby because you can work remotely.

Causes:
• Negative urban factors: High housing costs, congestion, pollution, and crime.
• Improved transport/technology: Commuting is easier, and the internet allows remote working.
• A desire for a better quality of life: Larger houses, gardens, better schools, and a less stressful environment.

Consequences:
• Influx of younger, wealthier people into rural areas, potentially driving up house prices for local residents (the "affordability crisis").
• Decline of services in the original city center (shops lose business).

Re-urbanisation (The Return)

Also known as urban renewal or gentrification, this is the movement of people back into the city centre or inner-city areas that were previously declining.
Analogy: A young professional moves into a refurbished, old warehouse flat right next to the train station.

Causes:
• Government/Council planning: Targeted urban renewal projects (e.g., docklands redevelopment).
• Changing demographics: Younger, single professionals (or couples without children) prefer the vibrancy and convenience of central city life.
• High transport costs/time: Moving back reduces the cost and stress of long commutes.

Consequences:
• Social tension: Gentrification can occur, where rising property values force original, often poorer, residents to move out.
• Economic boost: New businesses and services are attracted to the refurbished areas.

The Concept of a World City (6.2)

A World City (or global city) is a city that plays a critical role in the global economic system, linking countries together.
Example: London, New York, Tokyo.

Causes of Growth:
• Global Interdependence: They act as hubs for international trade, finance, and communications.
• Concentration of TNC headquarters: They host the decision-making centres of major global corporations.
• Specialised services: They contain highly specialised tertiary and quaternary sector services (e.g., international law, high-level banking).

World cities form a Hierarchy: Alpha (top tier), Beta, Gamma (smaller but still globally significant) cities.

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3. The Changing Structure of Urban Settlements (6.3)

We need to understand *why* different activities (shopping, factories, housing) are located where they are within a city. This is called Functional Zonation.

Factors Affecting Location of Activities (6.3)

The location of shops, services, and manufacturing is governed by various factors:
• Economic Factors: Accessibility to customers (for retail) or transport links/raw materials (for manufacturing). Cost of land is crucial (see Bid Rent).
• Social Factors: Closeness to residential areas (e.g., schools, local clinics).
• Environmental Factors: Avoiding polluted areas or locating industry near rivers for cooling/waste disposal (though this is changing).
• Political Factors (Planning): Government policies like zoning laws, which designate specific areas for residential, commercial, or industrial use.

The Central Business District (CBD)

The CBD is the historical, commercial, and geographical heart of the city.

Characteristics of the CBD:
• High land values (highest point of the Bid Rent curve).
• Highest concentration of retail and services (especially high-order services like flagship stores).
• High density of buildings (tall skyscrapers) to maximise the use of expensive land.
• Excellent accessibility (bus stations, subway/metro links converge here).

The Changing CBD: CBDs are evolving, especially in HICs:
• Decline of Manufacturing: Factories have moved out to cheaper, more spacious land in the suburbs (decentralisation).
• Increased Leisure/Residential: Conversion of old offices into residential apartments and the addition of entertainment facilities (cinemas, restaurants) to attract people after work hours.
• Online Competition: Retail in the CBD faces threats from internet shopping, forcing stores to offer unique "experiences."

Competition for Space and the Bid Rent Theory (6.3)

The concept of Spatial Competition explains how the most successful land users win the best spots.

Bid Rent Theory Explained Step-by-Step:
1. Land is most valuable at the center (CBD) because it has the maximum accessibility (most potential customers).
2. Different activities have different needs for central access and therefore different abilities to pay rent.
3. Retail (Shops/Banks) can afford the highest rent because maximum sales volumes depend on maximum customers. They have the steepest "bid rent curve."
4. Industry/Manufacturing needs space, access to major roads, and ports more than central location. Their ability to pay is lower, so they locate further out.
5. Residential Land Users (Housing) value space and quietness over central location. They have the lowest ability to pay high rents and occupy the cheapest land furthest from the CBD.

Memory Aid: R.I.R. (Retail is first, Industry is middle, Residential is far out.)

Functional Zonation

This is the tendency for land uses of the same type to group together. The Bid Rent curve results in classic patterns of zonation:
• CBD: Highest Density, Tertiary/Quaternary (Offices, Retail).
• Inner City: Older housing, sometimes industrial decline, undergoing renewal/gentrification.
• Suburbs (Residential Zone): Modern, spacious housing, local services.
• Rural-Urban Fringe: Large land users (airports, business parks, reservoirs), competition between urban and rural land uses.

Key Takeaway:

The structure of a city is not random. It is largely determined by economics, especially the Bid Rent Theory, which dictates that the most profitable users (retail) can pay the most for the most accessible land (the CBD).

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4. Residential Segregation (6.3)

Residential Segregation means that different social groups (based on income, ethnicity, or family status) live separately in distinct parts of the city.

Causes and Processes of Segregation

Segregation doesn't happen by accident; it's a result of deliberate choices and economic pressures:
• Income and Housing Market:
  • Economic Constraints: People can only afford certain housing types in specific areas. The poorest groups are often limited to the cheapest, most run-down inner-city areas or periphery squatter settlements.
  • Operation of the Housing Market: Estate agents or banks may favour or restrict housing options based on a buyer's profile (sometimes referred to as redlining historically).
• Race/Ethnicity and Culture:
  • Voluntary Grouping: People may choose to live near others from the same culture (a process called enclave formation) for shared religious services, specialist shops, and a sense of community.
  • Discrimination/Prejudice: Sometimes, minority groups face barriers to moving into certain neighbourhoods.
• Influence of Family and Friends: New migrants often rely on chain migration, following family members to established, familiar areas within the city.
• Planning: Zoning or public housing projects can inadvertently (or deliberately) group lower-income people together, reinforcing segregation.

Key Takeaway:

Urban areas are rarely perfect melting pots. Segregation is a geographical reality driven by a mix of affordability (economic factors) and the desire for social and cultural familiarity (ethnic/social factors).

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5. The Management of Urban Settlements (6.4)

Managing large, growing cities—especially in LICs and MICs—presents immense challenges in housing, services, and movement.

Challenge 1: Squatter Settlements (Shanty Towns)

These are unplanned residential areas built on land that residents do not legally own (lack of land tenure). They are typically found on the urban fringe or on dangerous/undesirable land (steep slopes, floodplains).
Examples: Favelas in Brazil; Kibera in Nairobi, Kenya.

Key Challenges:
• Infrastructure: Virtually non-existent infrastructure (no piped water, electricity, or proper sanitation).
• Health: High incidence of disease due to poor sanitation and overcrowding.
• Security: High crime rates and risk of eviction due to lack of land tenure.
• Environmental: Pollution, waste accumulation, and vulnerability to natural hazards (e.g., landslides).

Evaluating Attempted Solutions:

1. Site and Service Schemes (e.g., in Lusaka, Zambia):
• What they are: Government provides basic infrastructure (clean water pipes, road access) and legal land tenure (the "site"). Residents are then responsible for building their own homes (the "service").
• Evaluation: Good because it is affordable and promotes self-help, giving residents ownership and dignity. However, initial costs are still too high for the very poorest, and the schemes can be located far from job centres.

2. Self-Help / Incremental Housing:
• What they are: Providing residents with building materials, tools, and technical advice so they can gradually upgrade their own homes.
• Evaluation: Highly sustainable and community-based. But the process is slow, and results can be uneven.

Challenge 2: Providing Infrastructure (Power or Transport) for a City

Good infrastructure is the circulatory system of a city. Without it, economies slow down, and quality of life drops.

A. Transport Challenges (e.g., Traffic Congestion in MIC/HIC Cities)

• The Challenge: Massive traffic jams (congestion) reduce productivity, increase air pollution, and waste vast amounts of time.
• Attempted Solutions (Evaluation):
  • Hard Engineering (Road Expansion): Building more roads/flyovers. Evaluation: Often fails because it induces demand (more people drive), leading to the same congestion level in a few years (The "Jevons Paradox" of roads).
  • Soft Engineering (Mass Transit): Investing in high-capacity public transport (metros, Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) systems). Example: The TransMilenio BRT in Bogotá, Colombia. Evaluation: Excellent for reducing private car use and pollution, but requires huge upfront capital investment and good maintenance.
  • Demand Management: Congestion charging (e.g., London). Evaluation: Highly effective at reducing car traffic in charging zones, but can be politically unpopular and may push traffic problems out to the city boundaries.

B. Power/Energy Challenges (Ensuring reliable supply)

• The Challenge: Providing sufficient, reliable electricity for a rapidly growing population and industrial base without relying too heavily on fossil fuels.
• Attempted Solutions (Evaluation):
  • Decentralised Power Generation: Using smaller, local power stations or roof solar panels. Evaluation: Improves energy security and reduces transmission loss, but requires a complex "smart grid" infrastructure to manage.
  • Renewable Investment: Building large solar/wind farms outside the city. Evaluation: Environmentally beneficial and improves sustainability, but the intermittent nature of renewables means backup power sources (often fossil fuel plants) are still needed.

Key Takeaway:

Urban management solutions often require trade-offs. Solutions for squatter settlements require balancing self-help and affordability with necessary government infrastructure, while transport solutions require balancing the needs of private vehicle users with the sustainability benefits of mass transit.