The urban agglomeration is ... The largest urban agglomerations

The appearance of the world is changing rapidly: villages and towns give way to cities, the latter, in turn, are merged into a single whole and become agglomerations. This is a process of demographic and economic, which develops systematically and in stages, it can not be stopped. Progress itself dictates to mankind the conditions for its greatest acceleration. The entire twentieth century is a period of mass industrialization. The result was the development of various industries and the associated increase in the urban population, which provides any industrial enterprise with the main resource - workers.

History of appearance

The urban agglomeration is the process of expanding the territory of a settlement due to its construction and the absorption of adjacent settlements. Urbanization was quite swift, during 80-95 years. If we compare the census data at the beginning and end of the twentieth century, they clearly show the ratio of rural and urban population. In percentage terms, it looks like this: in 1903, 13% are urban residents, by 1995 this figure is 50%. The trend has survived to this day, but the first largest urban agglomerations appeared in the ancient world. For example, Athens, Alexandria and, of course, the great Rome. Much later, in the 17th century, the first agglomerations arose in Europe - Paris and London, which occupied a significant area in the British Isles. In the XIX century, the formation of large urban settlements began in North America. The very term "agglomeration" was first introduced by the geographer Frenchman M. Rouget. According to his definition, urban agglomeration is the output of non-agricultural activities for the administrative framework of the settlement and the involvement of surrounding communities in it. Existing definitions to date are quite diverse in presentation, but the generalizing principle is the process of expansion, growth of the city. In this regard, many criteria are taken into account.

Definition

NV Petrov characterizes the agglomeration as a cluster of cities and other settlements on the territorial principle, while in the process of development they grow together, all types of interrelations (labor, cultural, economic, etc.) intensify. In this case, the clusters should be compact and have clear administrative boundaries - both internal and external. Pertsik E.N. gives a slightly different definition: urban agglomeration is a special form of urbanization that implies the accumulation of territorially close settlements that are interconnected economically and have a common transport network, engineering infrastructure, production and cultural relations, a common social and technical base. In his works he emphasizes that this type of association is the most productive environment for scientific and technical activities, the development of progressive technologies and industries. Accordingly, it is here that the most qualified employees are grouped, for the convenience of which the sphere of services develops and conditions for a full rest are created. The largest cities and urban agglomerations have moving territorial boundaries, this concerns not only the actual location of individual points, but also the time intervals spent on moving a person or cargo from the core to the periphery.

Criteria for determining agglomeration

Among modern cities there are many developed ones with a population of over 2-3 million people. To determine whether this settlement can be classified as agglomeration, you can, using certain evaluation criteria. However, even here the opinions of analysts diverge: some suggest to focus on a group of factors, others it is enough to have one feature that is clearly expressed and documented. The main indicators, according to which the city can be attributed to the agglomeration:

1. Density of population per 1 m ² .
2. The number (from 100 thousand people, the upper limit is unlimited).
3. The speed of construction and its continuity (no more than 20 km between the main city and its satellites).
4. Number of absorbed settlements (satellites).
5. The intensity of trips of various purposes between the core and the periphery (to work, study or for leisure, the so-called pendulum migrations).
6. The presence of a single infrastructure (engineering communications, communication).
7. General logistics network.
8. Percentage of population engaged in non-agricultural work.

Types of urban agglomerations

With all the diversity of the structure of interaction and the conditions for the coexistence of cities and their satellites, there is a concise system for determining the type of settlement. There are two main types: monocentric and polycentric agglomerations. The largest number of existing and emerging mergers are classified in the first category. Monocyclic agglomerations are formed according to the principle of domination of one main city. There is a nucleus that, when growing, includes other settlements in its territory and shapes the direction of their further development in symbiosis with its potential capabilities. The largest urban agglomerations (the vast majority) are created precisely by a monotype. An example is the Moscow or New York. Polycentric agglomerations are rather an exception, they unite several cities, each of which is an independent nucleus and absorbs nearby settlements. For example, in Germany this is the Ruhr basin, completely built up by large entities, each of which has several satellites, but they do not depend on each other and are united into a single whole only on a territorial basis.

Structure

The largest urban agglomerations of the world were formed in cities, the history of which ranges from 100 to 1000 years. It has developed historically, any production complexes, shopping networks, cultural centers are easier to improve than to create new ones from scratch. The exception is only American cities, which were originally planned as agglomerations for higher rates of economic development.

So, let's draw brief conclusions. The urban agglomeration is a structured settlement that (approximately, there are no clear boundaries) can be divided into the following sections:

1. The city center, its historical part, which represents the cultural heritage of the region. His attendance is the greatest peak in the daytime, often there are restrictions on the entry of personal transportation to this territory.
2. The ring surrounding the central part, the business center. This area is built up very tightly with office buildings, in addition, there is a ramified system of food enterprises (restaurants, bars, cafes), the service sector is also represented quite widely (beauty salons, gyms and gyms, fashion studios, etc.). There is a well-developed trading network, especially expensive shops with exclusive goods, and there are administrative state institutions.
3. Residential area, which refers to the old buildings. In the process of agglomeration it often turns into business quarters. This is due to the high cost of land under residential buildings. Because of the constant demand for it, buildings that do not belong to monuments of architecture or history are demolished or modernized for office and other premises.
4. Multi-storey mass building. Remote (sleeping) areas, industrial and industrial areas. This sector has, as a rule, a great social focus (schools, large outlets, polyclinics, libraries, etc.).
5. Suburban territories, parks, squares, satellite villages. Depending on the size of the agglomeration, this territory develops and is equipped.

Stages of development

All urban agglomerations of the world go through the basic processes of formation. Many settlements stop in their development (at some stage), some are just starting their way to a highly developed and comfortable structure for people to live in. It is accepted to divide the following stages:

1. Industrial agglomeration. The connection between the core and the periphery is based on the production factor. Labor resources are tied to a specific enterprise, there is no common market for real estate and land.
2. Transformational stage. Characterized by an increase in the level of pendulum migration, respectively formed a common labor market, the center of which is a large city. The core of the agglomeration begins to actively form the sector of services and leisure.
3. Dynamic agglomeration. This stage provides for the modernization and transfer of production facilities to peripheral areas. In parallel, the logistics system is developing, which allows for faster fusion of the core and satellite cities. There are common labor markets, real estate, a common infrastructure is being built.
4. Post-industrial agglomeration. The final stage, which is characterized by the end of all the processes of interaction. Existing connections (core-periphery) are strengthened and expanded. Work is beginning to improve the agglomeration status in order to attract more resources and expand activities.

Peculiarities of Russian agglomerations

To increase the pace of economic growth and the development of knowledge-based production, our country must have clearly formulated and calculated plans for the near and long-term prospects. Historically, the situation in which the urban agglomerations of Russia were built exclusively on an industrial type. With a planned economy, this was enough, but with the forced transition to the transformational stage (the formation of a market economy), a number of problems arose that had to be eliminated during the 1990s. Further development of urban agglomerations requires centralized state intervention. That is why this topic is often discussed by experts and the highest state authorities. It is necessary to completely restore, modernize and move production bases, which will entail dynamic agglomeration processes. Without the participation of the state as a financing and governing body, this stage is inaccessible to many cities. The economic advantages of the functioning agglomerations are undeniable, therefore, the process of stimulating associations of territorially connected cities and settlements takes place. The largest urban agglomeration of the world can be created in Russia in the near future. To do this, there are all the necessary resources, it remains to use competently the main - administrative.

The largest urban agglomerations in Russia

In fact, today there is no clear statistics. According to the criteria for estimating agglomerations in the Russian Federation, 22 largest ones can be identified, which are developing steadily. Monocentric type of formation prevails in our country. Urban agglomerations of Russia are in most cases at the industrial stage of development, but their human resources are sufficient for further growth. By number and stage of formation they are arranged in the following sequence (the first 10):

1. Moscow.
2. St. Petersburg.
3. The Rostov.
4. The Samara-Togliatti.
5. The Nizhny Novgorod.
6. The Novosibirsk.
7. Ekaterinburg.
8. The Kazan.
9. Chelyabinsk.
10. The Volgograd.

The number of urban agglomerations in the Russian Federation is growing as a result of the creation of new associations, which do not necessarily include cities with a population of one million people: the merger takes place at the expense of a resource indicator or industrial interests.

World agglomerations

Amazing figures and facts can be obtained by studying this topic. Some world agglomerations have the areas and the population, comparable with similar indicators of the whole country. The total number of such subjects is difficult to calculate, because each expert applies a certain (selected by them) group of characteristics or one of them. But when considering the top ten, you can count on the unanimity of specialists. So:

1. The largest urban agglomeration of the world is Tokyo-Yokohama. The population is 37.5 million people (Japan).
2. Jakarta (Indonesia).
3. New Delhi, India.
4. Seoul-Incheon (Republic of Korea).
5. Manila (Philippines).
6. Shanghai (PRC).
7. Karachi (Pakistan).
8. New York, USA).
9. Mexico City, Mexico.
10. São Paulo (Brazil).

Problems of urban agglomerations

With all the positive aspects of the development of the economy, culture, production and science, there are quite a number of shortcomings that characterize megacities. Firstly, the large length of communications and the constantly increasing load (with active development) leads to problems in housing and communal services, respectively, the level of comfort of citizens decreases. Secondly, transport and logistics schemes do not always ensure the proper level of speed of transportation of goods and people. Thirdly, a high level of environmental pollution (air, water, soil). Fourthly, agglomeration attracts most of the working population from small towns that are not their companions. Fifth, the complexity of administrative management of large areas. These problems are known to every city dweller, and for their elimination a long and laborious work of all city structures is necessary.