Administrative unit of a dense urban core and its satellite cities
"Metro area" redirects here. For the dance music duo, see
Metro Area
.
A
metropolitan area
or
metro
is a region consisting of a densely populated
urban agglomeration
and its surrounding territories sharing
industries
,
commercial areas
,
transport network
,
infrastructures
and
housing
.
[1]
[2]
A metropolitan area usually comprises multiple
principal cities
,
jurisdictions
and
municipalities
:
neighborhoods
,
townships
,
boroughs
,
cities
,
towns
,
exurbs
,
suburbs
,
counties
,
districts
and even
states
and
nations
in areas like the
eurodistricts
. As social, economic and political institutions have changed, metropolitan areas have become key economic and political regions.
[3]
Metropolitan areas in the United States are delineated around the
Core
of a
core based statistical area
which is defined as an
urban area
, (this is different than the
urban core
) and consists of central and outlying counties as the terms
central city
and
suburb
are no longer used by the census bureau due to suburbanization of employment.
[4]
[5]
[6]
In other countries metropolitan areas sometimes anchored by one
central city
such as the
Paris metropolitan area
(
Paris
). In other cases, metropolitan areas contain multiple centers of equal or close to equal importance, especially in the United States; for example, the
Dallas?Fort Worth metropolitan area
has eight principal cities. The
Islamabad?Rawalpindi metropolitan area
in Pakistan, the
Rhine-Ruhr
in Germany, and the
Randstad
in The Netherlands are other examples.
[7]
In the
United States
, the concept of
metropolitan statistical areas
has gained prominence. The area of the Greater
Washington metropolitan area
is an example of statistically grouping independent cities and county areas from various states to form a larger city because of proximity, history and recent
urban
convergence. Metropolitan areas may themselves be part of a greater
megalopolis
. For urban centres located outside metropolitan areas that generate a similar attraction at a smaller scale for a region, the concept of a
regiopolis
and a respective regiopolitan area, or regio, was introduced by German professors in 2006.
[8]
In the United States, the term
micropolitan statistical area
is used.
Definition
[
edit
]
A metropolitan area combines an
urban agglomeration
with the contiguous built-up areas, which are not necessarily urban in character but are closely bound to the center by employment or other commerce. These outlying zones are sometimes known as a commuter belt and may extend well beyond the urban zone to other political entities. For example,
East Hampton, New York
, on
Long Island
is considered part of the
New York metropolitan area
.
In practice, the parameters of metropolitan areas, in both official and unofficial usage, are not consistent. Sometimes they are little different from an urban area, and in other cases, they cover broad regions that have little relation to a single urban settlement; comparative statistics for metropolitan areas should take this into account. The term metropolitan can also refer to a
county
-level
municipal government
structure, with some shared services between a central city and its suburbs, which may or may not include the entirety of a metropolitan area. Population figures given for one metro area can vary by millions.
There has been no significant change in the basic concept of metropolitan areas since its adoption in 1950,
[9]
although significant changes in geographic distributions have occurred since then, and more are expected.
[10]
Because of the fluidity of the term "metropolitan statistical area", the term used colloquially is more often "metro service area", "metro area", or "MSA", taken to include not only a city but also the surrounding suburban, exurban and sometimes rural areas, all of which the city is presumed to influence. A polycentric metropolitan area contains multiple urban agglomerations not connected by continuous development. In defining a metropolitan area, it is sufficient that a city or cities form a nucleus with which other areas have a high degree of integration.
A metropolitan area is commonly known and characterized by a high concentration in
service sector
labor and enterprises.
[11]
[12]
Macroeconomics
views metropolitan areas as
trade
regions of economic significance.
[13]
Africa
[
edit
]
South Africa
[
edit
]
The
Greater Johannesburg metropolitan area
is the largest metropolitan area in
South Africa
. Its population was over 9.6 million as of the 2011 South Africa Census, in contrast to its urban area, which consisted of approximately 7.9 million inhabitants as of 2011. Conversely,
metropolitan municipalities
in South Africa are defined as commonly governed areas of a metropolitan area. The largest such metropolitan municipal government entity in South Africa is the
City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality
, which presided over nearly 5 million people as of 2016. However, the Greater Johannesburg metropolitan area houses roughly ten times the population of its core municipal city of
Johannesburg
, which contained 957,441 people as of the 2011 census.
Americas
[
edit
]
Brazil
[
edit
]
In Brazil, the terms
metropolitan area
(
Portuguese
:
regiao metropolitana
) and
urban agglomeration
(
aglomeracao urbana
) have specific meanings. They are defined by federal and state legislation as collections of
municipalities
focused on "integrating the organization, planning and execution of public functions of common interest".
[14]
An
integrated development area
(
regiao integrada de desenvolvimento
) is one of the two above structures that crosses state (or
Federal District
) boundaries.
The IBGE defines also "Immediate Geographic Areas" (formerly termed
microregions
) which capture the region "surrounding urban centers for the supply of immediate needs of the population".
[15]
Intended for policy planning purposes, as of March 2021 census data is not tabulated on the level of these Areas, but instead at the
municipality
or state level.
[16]
Chile
[
edit
]
There are three metropolitan areas in Chile, the biggest and most important one is the Gran Santiago in the Santiago Metropolitan Region, with over 7 million inhabitants, making it the largest and most populated urban area in Chile. The other two metro areas are Gran Valparaiso in the Valparaiso Region with almost a million inhabitants, and Gran Concepcion in the Bio Bio Region, with a population of about a million people living in it.
Smaller "metropolitan" areas are known as conurbations. Conurbaciones tend to have a bit over 200.000 inhabitants to be considered as such. An example is the Conurbacion de Rancagua, which considers the area shared by the city of Rancagua, and the adjacent smaller towns of Machali, Gultro and Graneros.
Mexico
[
edit
]
Metropolitan areas are known as
zonas metropolitanas
in Mexico. The National Population Council (CONAPO) defines them as:
[17]
- a set of two or more municipalities where a city with a population of at least 100,000 is located, and whose urban area, functions and activities exceed the limits of the municipality.
- municipalities with a city of more than 500,000 inhabitants, or a city of more than 200,000 inhabitants located in the northern and southern border areas and in the coastal zone.
- municipalities where state capitals are located, if they are not already included in a metropolitan zone.
As of 2018, there are 74
zonas metropolitanas
in Mexico. 75.1 million people, 62.8% of the country population, live within a metropolitan area.
[17]
United States
[
edit
]
As of February 28, 2013, the
United States
Office of Management and Budget
(OMB) defined 1,098
statistical areas
for the metropolitan areas of the United States and
Puerto Rico
.
[18]
These 1,098 statistical areas comprise 929
Core-Based Statistical Areas
(CBSAs) and 169
Combined Statistical Areas
(CSAs). The 929 Core-Based Statistical Areas are divided into 388
Metropolitan Statistical Areas
(MSAs ? 381 for the U.S. and seven for Puerto Rico) and 541
Micropolitan Statistical Areas
(μSAs ? 536 for the U.S. and five for Puerto Rico). The 169 Combined Statistical Areas (166 for the U.S. and three for Puerto Rico) each comprise two or more adjacent Core Based Statistical Areas.
[
citation needed
]
The Office of Management and Budget defines a Metropolitan Statistical Area as one or more adjacent
counties
or
county equivalents
that have at least one
urban area
of at least 50,000 population, plus adjacent territory that has a high degree of economic and
social integration
with the core as measured by
commuting
ties. The OMB then defines a Combined Statistical Area as consisting of various combinations of adjacent metropolitan and micropolitan statistical areas with economic ties measured by commuting patterns. The Office of Management and Budget further defines a core-based statistical area (CBSA) to be a geographical area that consists of one or more counties (or equivalents) anchored by an urban center of at least 10,000 people plus adjacent counties that are socioeconomically tied to the urban center by commuting.
Asia and the Pacific
[
edit
]
Australia
[
edit
]
The
Australian Bureau of Statistics
uses
Greater Capital City Statistical Areas
(GCCSAs), which are geographical areas designed to represent the functional extent of each of the eight state and territory capital cities. They were designed to reflect labor markets, using the 2011 Census "travel to work" data. Labor markets are sometimes used as proxy measures of the functional extent of a city as it contains the majority of the commuting population. GCCSAs replaced "Statistical Divisions" used until 2011.
[19]
Other metropolitan areas in Australia include cross border cities or continuous built-up areas between two or more cities that are connected by an extensive public transport network that allows for commuting for work or services.
[
citation needed
]
Bangladesh
[
edit
]
In
Bangladesh
, the large population centers which have significant Financial, political and administrative Importance are considered to be as Metropolitan cities, which are governed by
City Corporations
. In total, there are 12 City Corporations in Bangladesh.
[20]
4 of them (
Dhaka North City Corporation
,
Dhaka South City Corporation
,
Narayanganj City Corporation
,
Gazipur City Corporation
) are part of
Dhaka Metropolition Area
.
China
[
edit
]
In
China
, there used to be no clear distinction between
megalopolis
(
城市群
, lit. city cluster) and metropolitan area (
都市圈
) until
National Development and Reform Commission
issued
Guidelines on the Cultivation and Development of Modern Metropolitan Areas
(
?于培育?展?代化都市圈的指?意?
) on Feb 19, 2019, in which a metropolitan area was defined as "an urbanized spatial form in a megalopolis dominated by (a) supercity(-ies) or megacity(-ies), or a large metropolis playing a leading part, and within the basic range of 1-hour commute area."
[21]
India
[
edit
]
In
India
, a metropolitan city is defined as one with a population more than four million.
[22]
In policing jurisdiction, state governments can declare any city or town with a population exceeding one million as a metropolitan area as per the
Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973
.
[23]
Indonesia
[
edit
]
In
Indonesia
, the
government of Indonesia
defines a
metropolitan area
as an
urban agglomeration
where its
spatial planning
is prioritised due to its highly important influence on the country.
Jakarta
,
Surabaya
,
Bandung
,
Semarang
,
Medan
,
Makassar
,
Palembang
are important metropolitan area in the country. Currently, there are 10 metropolitan cities in Indonesia that have been recognized by the government.
[24]
Pakistan
[
edit
]
Pakistan
has nine metropolitan areas with populations greater than a million. Five of these are entirely in
Punjab
including
Lahore
,
Faisalabad
,
Gujranwala
,
Multan
; one (
Islamabad-Rawalpindi
is split between Punjab and the
Islamabad Capital Territory
; two are located in
Sindh
, including
Karachi
, the largest metropolitan area in the country, and
Hyderabad
; one in
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
:
Peshawar
; and the final in
Balochistan
:
Quetta
.
Philippines
[
edit
]
The
Philippines
currently has three metropolitan areas defined by the
National Economic and Development Authority
(NEDA). These metropolitan areas are separated into three main geographical areas;
Metro Manila
(which is located in
Luzon
),
Metro Cebu
(which is located in
Visayas
), and
Metro Davao
(which is located in
Mindanao
). The official definition of each area does not necessarily follow the actual extent of continuous urbanization. For example, the built-up area of
Metro Manila
has long spilled out of its officially defined borders into the adjacent provinces of
Bulacan
,
Rizal
,
Laguna
, and
Cavite
. The number of metropolitan areas in the Philippines was reduced from 13 in 2007 to the current three based from the 2017?2022 Philippine Development Plan by NEDA. The other 10 metropolitan areas were
Metro Angeles
,
Metro Bacolod
,
Metro Baguio
,
Metro Batangas
,
Metro Cagayan de Oro
,
Metro Dagupan
,
Metro Iloilo?Guimaras
,
Metro Butuan
,
Metro Naga
, and
Metro Olongapo
.
United Arab Emirates
[
edit
]
Dubai
-
Sharjah
-
Ajman
(DSA) is a metropolitan area in the United Arab Emirates. It consists of the combined, greater urban areas of Dubai, Ajman, and Sharjah. The urban areas at the northeast end of Dubai flow into those of Sharjah, which in turn are contiguous with those of Ajman. The total population is about 5.9 million people as of 2023
[25]
[26]
[27]
Europe
[
edit
]
The
European Union
's statistical agency
Eurostat
has created a concept named
larger urban zone
(LUZ). The LUZ represents an attempt at a harmonised definition of the metropolitan area, and the goal was to have an area from which a significant share of the residents commute into the city, a concept known as the "functional urban region".
[28]
France
[
edit
]
France's national statistics office,
INSEE
, names an urban core and its surrounding area of commuter influence an
aire d'attraction d'une ville
[
fr
]
(or AAV, literally meaning "catchment area of a city"), plural:
aires d'attraction des villes
.
[29]
The official translation of this statistical area in English (as used by INSEE) is "functional area".
[30]
The AAV follows the same definition as the
Functional Urban Area
(FUA) used by
Eurostat
and the
OECD
, and the AAVs are thus strictly comparable to the FUAs.
[30]
The AAV replaced in 2020 the metropolitan statistical area called
aire urbaine
(AU).
[29]
The AU, which was defined differently than the AAV, has now been discarded by INSEE and replaced with the AAV in order to facilitate international comparisons.
[30]
Germany
[
edit
]
Metropolitan regions in Germany
by definition, are the eleven urban areas that are the most densely populated areas in the
Federal Republic of Germany
. They comprise the major German cities and their surrounding catchment areas and form the political, commercial and cultural centers of the country.
For urban centers outside metropolitan areas, that generate a similar attraction at smaller scale for their region, the concept of the Regiopolis and respectively regiopolitan area or region was introduced by German professors in 2006.
Italy
[
edit
]
In 2001 Italy transformed 14 provinces of some of the country's largest cities into
Metropolitan Cities
. Therefore, the territory of the
Metropolitan City
corresponds to that of a normal Italian province.
Sweden
[
edit
]
The
list of metropolitan areas in Sweden
is collated based on statistics of commuting between central municipalities and surrounding municipalities and taking into account existing planning cooperation in the country's three geographic regions.
[31]
They were defined around 1965. In 2005, a number of further municipalities were added to the defined areas.
Turkey
[
edit
]
The word metropolitan describes the central municipality governing local services in a province with more than 750.000 residents in
Turkey
, like
Istanbul
and its metropolitan municipality, the
Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality
. There are 30 officially defined "metropolitan municipalities" in Turkey.
[32]
This classification, however, is only used for administrative purposes, and sometimes contradicts the colloquial use of the term "metro area". As an example, Gebze, a district in
Kocaeli
province and thus in the jurisdiction of the Kocaeli Metropolitan Municipality, is arguably within the metro area of Istanbul with many of its residents commuting to Istanbul for work and the Marmaray, a commuter rail line, extending into the district. The district however, as previously mentioned, is not a part of Istanbul's provincial limits, and thus not subject to the jurisdiction of its metropolitan municipality. The word metropolitan (municipality) is generally only used as an administrative distinction in Turkey.
United Kingdom
[
edit
]
The
United Kingdom
's
Office for National Statistics
defines "
travel to work areas
" as areas where "at least 75% of an area's resident workforce work in the area and at least 75% of the people who work in the area also live in the area".
[33]
The
European Union
's
ESPON
group has compiled a separate
list of metropolitan areas
which covers the UK.
See also
[
edit
]
|
Lists of metropolitan areas
[
edit
]
Metropolitan planning theories
[
edit
]
|
Terms
[
edit
]
|
References
[
edit
]
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.
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.
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978-953-51-3897-6
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.
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a
b
"Delimitation of Mexico's Metropolitan Areas 2015"
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.
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"OMB Bulletin No. 13-01: Revised Delineations of Metropolitan Statistical Areas, Micropolitan Statistical Areas, and Combined Statistical Areas, and Guidance on Uses of the Delineations of These Areas"
(PDF)
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.
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.
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978-0-8213-9865-4
.
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"?于培育?展?代化都市圈的指?意?(?改??〔2019〕328?)"
(in Chinese (China)). ?家?展改革委. 2019-02-19.
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(PDF)
.
Central Pollution Control Board
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. Retrieved
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.
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.
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a
b
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- ^
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Office for National Statistics
External links
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