Contemporary Urban Environments
1.Definitions
Urbanisation - The spreading out of urban areas into rural areas
Urban growth - An increase in the absolute size of an urban population
Urban sprawl - The spreading of urban development on undeveloped land
near a city
Millionaire city - A city with over 1 million inhabitants
Mega city - City with more than 10 million people
Metacity - A city with a population over 20 million
World city - The most important cities in the world in terms of economic
and cultural impacts
Suburbanisation - The movement of people living in the city centre to the
suburbs
Decentralisation - The movement of shops, offices etc away from urban
areas into retail & business parks in the suburbs
Counterurbanisation - The migration of people from major urban areas to
smaller urban settlements and rural areas
Urban resurgence - The regeneration of an urban area that's been through
a period of decline
Gentrification - Properties purchased by wealthy foreign investors displace
current inhabitants because of rise in costs
Underemployment - A situation where people are working fewer hours
than they wishes
Edge cities - A suburb that has developed its own political/economic base,
independent of the city
Homogenistaion - Things become similar/the same
De-industrialisation - Reduction of manufacturing within an economy,
followed by growth in tertiary and quaternary sectors
Fortress landscapes - Where developments are specifically designed
around security, protection and surveillance
Cultural diversity - the existence of a variety of cultural or ethnic groups
within a society
Diaspora - A group of people who don't live in their original country but
still maintain their heritage
Economic inequality - The unequal distribution of income and opportunity
between groups in society
Social segregation - When people are excluded from parts of their own
city by social & economic factors
Multiple deprivation - When different types of deprivation are combined
into one overall measure of deprivation
Inequality - Difference in circumstance, lack of equality
Interculturalism - Moving beyond acceptance and promotion dialogue &
interaction between cultures
Urban social exclusion - Economic and social problems faced by residents
in areas of multiple deprivation
,2. Geo CUE Consequences of Urbanisation & urban growth & urban
change & urban policy
What are the consequences of urban sprawl? - More roads & infrastructure
required, loss of wildlife/habitats/farmland & open spaces. Air pollution
increased. Homogenisation of the landscape
What are the consequences of housing in LICs? - Large areas of informal
and inadequate housing on the edge of the city. Limited access to basic
infrastructure and lack of services. Lots of inner city housing is poor
quality.
What are the consequences of shortage of affordable housing in HICs? -
Rising demand for accommodation has mean house prices increased
What are the consequences of lack of services? - Lack of electricity &
water services, limited maintenance of infrastructure. Rapid spread of
disease. More people and more rubbish, leads to rubbish dumpster
What are the consequences of unemployment? - Pressure to make
sufficient jobs. Migrants move to the city to find work which leads to
informal work e.g. hawking
What are the consequences of transport issues? - Congestion, pollution,
unplanned cities
What were the main industries in the U.K.? - Coal mines, steel works but
mostly but mostly textiles
What're the causes of de-industrialisation? - Mechanisation, increased
costs, reduced demand, globalisation of manufacturing
What're the causes of decentralisation? - Improved transport, competition
for space, high land costs, inadequate/out-dated buildings
CBD (central business district) - Middle of a city, most amenities &
services are there, often surrounded by a ring roadway
Inner City - Mainly residential but with some businesses and recreational
parks. Terraced housing & short roads
Suburbs - Towards the edge of the city, mainly residential with semi-
detached houses. Short, curved streets and cul-de-sacs
Rural-Urban Fringe - Edge of the city, farmland and open spaces as well as
new housing developments, large retail and business parks
What're the 3 problems with the growth of the service industry? - Many
people who lost jobs sue to de-industrialisation continue to suffer from
long term unemployment, many service jobs are part time or temporary.
The number of service jobs haven't made up for the loss of manufacturing
jobs
What're 3 economic impacts of de-industrialisation? - Loss of jobs and
personal disposable income, increase in demand for state benefits, the de-
multiplier effect in the affected urban areas
What're the 3 social impacts of de-industrialisation? - Higher levels of
deprivation, increase in unemployment, higher levels of crime, family
breakdown, substance abuse etc
What're 3 environmental impacts of de-industrialisation? - Deteriorating
infrastructure, positive environmental impacts including reduced noise,
land & water pollution & reduced traffic congestion
, Urban regeneration - The attempts to reverse urban decline by improving
physical structure & the economy of those areas. In all regeneration
programmes, public money is used as an attempt to pump private
investment
3. Geo CUE urban regeneration policies
Why was regeneration needed in London Docklands? - Large areas of
derelict (1000ha), docks abandoned as they were too small for modern
ships, high unemployment
How were the docklands improved? - LDDC (London Docklands
Development Coorporation) was created which had total control over the
area (2,226 ha), much of the area became an enterprise zone that
received government grants and tax relief to attract new industry, £6.5
billion from private investment and £1.8 billion from public money
What were the successes of London Docklands? - Populating doubled from
40k to 80k, underground station a Stratford, new shopping facilities e.g.
Surrey quays
What were the criticisms of London Docklands? - New housing was too
expensive, jobs were too skilled for local population, increased cost of
living meant some had to move out the area
Why was regeneration needed in Bradford (trident)? - Lowest life
expectancy in Yorkshire, little Horton/west bowling/marshfields were in
the 1% most deprived in the country, 1/3 of residents lived in social
rented housing
How was Bradford improved? - Slum demolition, created new parks & play
areas, creation of new community centres
What were the successes of Bradford trident? - Unemployment reduced
from 16-8.5%, household incomes increased by 132%, no qualifications of
the adult population reduced from 41-36%
What were the criticisms of Bradford trident? - Unemployment was still
twice the national average, came rates also exceeded national average,
criticisms about cost of living
4. Geo CUE urban form
Urban form - The physical characteristics that make up built up areas on a
variety of scales
What're the physical characteristics of urban form? - Shape, size, density,
organisation/configuration
What're the scales of urban form? - Street, local/neighbourhood, urban,
regional, national
How many mega cities in the U.K.? Which one? - 1- London
How many large metropolitan areas in the U.K.? Which ones? - 6- Leeds,
Manchester, Sheffield, Newcastle, Birmingham, Liverpool
How many towns and cities with more than 125,000 people? - 56
What're the human factors influencing urban form? - -Population- due to
globalisation, built environment- physical infrastructure needs to keep up
pace
-Economy- industry tended to locate near populations
1.Definitions
Urbanisation - The spreading out of urban areas into rural areas
Urban growth - An increase in the absolute size of an urban population
Urban sprawl - The spreading of urban development on undeveloped land
near a city
Millionaire city - A city with over 1 million inhabitants
Mega city - City with more than 10 million people
Metacity - A city with a population over 20 million
World city - The most important cities in the world in terms of economic
and cultural impacts
Suburbanisation - The movement of people living in the city centre to the
suburbs
Decentralisation - The movement of shops, offices etc away from urban
areas into retail & business parks in the suburbs
Counterurbanisation - The migration of people from major urban areas to
smaller urban settlements and rural areas
Urban resurgence - The regeneration of an urban area that's been through
a period of decline
Gentrification - Properties purchased by wealthy foreign investors displace
current inhabitants because of rise in costs
Underemployment - A situation where people are working fewer hours
than they wishes
Edge cities - A suburb that has developed its own political/economic base,
independent of the city
Homogenistaion - Things become similar/the same
De-industrialisation - Reduction of manufacturing within an economy,
followed by growth in tertiary and quaternary sectors
Fortress landscapes - Where developments are specifically designed
around security, protection and surveillance
Cultural diversity - the existence of a variety of cultural or ethnic groups
within a society
Diaspora - A group of people who don't live in their original country but
still maintain their heritage
Economic inequality - The unequal distribution of income and opportunity
between groups in society
Social segregation - When people are excluded from parts of their own
city by social & economic factors
Multiple deprivation - When different types of deprivation are combined
into one overall measure of deprivation
Inequality - Difference in circumstance, lack of equality
Interculturalism - Moving beyond acceptance and promotion dialogue &
interaction between cultures
Urban social exclusion - Economic and social problems faced by residents
in areas of multiple deprivation
,2. Geo CUE Consequences of Urbanisation & urban growth & urban
change & urban policy
What are the consequences of urban sprawl? - More roads & infrastructure
required, loss of wildlife/habitats/farmland & open spaces. Air pollution
increased. Homogenisation of the landscape
What are the consequences of housing in LICs? - Large areas of informal
and inadequate housing on the edge of the city. Limited access to basic
infrastructure and lack of services. Lots of inner city housing is poor
quality.
What are the consequences of shortage of affordable housing in HICs? -
Rising demand for accommodation has mean house prices increased
What are the consequences of lack of services? - Lack of electricity &
water services, limited maintenance of infrastructure. Rapid spread of
disease. More people and more rubbish, leads to rubbish dumpster
What are the consequences of unemployment? - Pressure to make
sufficient jobs. Migrants move to the city to find work which leads to
informal work e.g. hawking
What are the consequences of transport issues? - Congestion, pollution,
unplanned cities
What were the main industries in the U.K.? - Coal mines, steel works but
mostly but mostly textiles
What're the causes of de-industrialisation? - Mechanisation, increased
costs, reduced demand, globalisation of manufacturing
What're the causes of decentralisation? - Improved transport, competition
for space, high land costs, inadequate/out-dated buildings
CBD (central business district) - Middle of a city, most amenities &
services are there, often surrounded by a ring roadway
Inner City - Mainly residential but with some businesses and recreational
parks. Terraced housing & short roads
Suburbs - Towards the edge of the city, mainly residential with semi-
detached houses. Short, curved streets and cul-de-sacs
Rural-Urban Fringe - Edge of the city, farmland and open spaces as well as
new housing developments, large retail and business parks
What're the 3 problems with the growth of the service industry? - Many
people who lost jobs sue to de-industrialisation continue to suffer from
long term unemployment, many service jobs are part time or temporary.
The number of service jobs haven't made up for the loss of manufacturing
jobs
What're 3 economic impacts of de-industrialisation? - Loss of jobs and
personal disposable income, increase in demand for state benefits, the de-
multiplier effect in the affected urban areas
What're the 3 social impacts of de-industrialisation? - Higher levels of
deprivation, increase in unemployment, higher levels of crime, family
breakdown, substance abuse etc
What're 3 environmental impacts of de-industrialisation? - Deteriorating
infrastructure, positive environmental impacts including reduced noise,
land & water pollution & reduced traffic congestion
, Urban regeneration - The attempts to reverse urban decline by improving
physical structure & the economy of those areas. In all regeneration
programmes, public money is used as an attempt to pump private
investment
3. Geo CUE urban regeneration policies
Why was regeneration needed in London Docklands? - Large areas of
derelict (1000ha), docks abandoned as they were too small for modern
ships, high unemployment
How were the docklands improved? - LDDC (London Docklands
Development Coorporation) was created which had total control over the
area (2,226 ha), much of the area became an enterprise zone that
received government grants and tax relief to attract new industry, £6.5
billion from private investment and £1.8 billion from public money
What were the successes of London Docklands? - Populating doubled from
40k to 80k, underground station a Stratford, new shopping facilities e.g.
Surrey quays
What were the criticisms of London Docklands? - New housing was too
expensive, jobs were too skilled for local population, increased cost of
living meant some had to move out the area
Why was regeneration needed in Bradford (trident)? - Lowest life
expectancy in Yorkshire, little Horton/west bowling/marshfields were in
the 1% most deprived in the country, 1/3 of residents lived in social
rented housing
How was Bradford improved? - Slum demolition, created new parks & play
areas, creation of new community centres
What were the successes of Bradford trident? - Unemployment reduced
from 16-8.5%, household incomes increased by 132%, no qualifications of
the adult population reduced from 41-36%
What were the criticisms of Bradford trident? - Unemployment was still
twice the national average, came rates also exceeded national average,
criticisms about cost of living
4. Geo CUE urban form
Urban form - The physical characteristics that make up built up areas on a
variety of scales
What're the physical characteristics of urban form? - Shape, size, density,
organisation/configuration
What're the scales of urban form? - Street, local/neighbourhood, urban,
regional, national
How many mega cities in the U.K.? Which one? - 1- London
How many large metropolitan areas in the U.K.? Which ones? - 6- Leeds,
Manchester, Sheffield, Newcastle, Birmingham, Liverpool
How many towns and cities with more than 125,000 people? - 56
What're the human factors influencing urban form? - -Population- due to
globalisation, built environment- physical infrastructure needs to keep up
pace
-Economy- industry tended to locate near populations
