Characteristics of Urban Places (DP IB Geography)

Urban Site & Function

What is a settlement?

• A settlement is a place where people live and carry out a range of activities, including trade and manufacturing

• Settlements have different types based on:

  • Shape or form

  • Population size

  • Function 

  • Features

  • Hierarchy 

• Settlements range from isolated buildings in rural areas to urban megacities of over 10 million people

• The physical geography of an area impacts on the settlement pattern

What are urban settlements?

• The definition of an urban area varies:

  • In the UK, the government defines settlements with a population of over 10 000 people

  • In many places, urban settlements are those with more than 5 000 residents 

Urban settlement characteristics

• Urban areas tend to:

  • Have a high density of human structures, such as houses, commercial buildings, roads, bridges, and railways

  • Be large and have a high population density

  • Depend on water supply, relief, and soil fertility for their location and development

  • Have diverse social and cultural activities, such as entertainment, education, and healthcare

  • Be densely populated areas that have a high degree of economic, social and cultural diversity

  • Be located near major transportation routes, such as roads, railways, ports and airports, to ensure trade and mobility

• Urban areas:

  • Have a complex and hierarchical structure of land use, with different zones for residential, commercial, industrial, recreational and administrative functions

  • Are influenced by various factors, such as:

    • Physical geography

    • Climate

    • History

    • Politics

    • Culture

    • Globalisation

What is meant by settlement site and situation?

• The site is the physical land that the settlement is built on

  • Natural conditions, historical development, planning regulations, market forces, and social preferences are just a few of the factors that have an impact on the site

• The situation can be thought of as the position of the settlement in relation to other features, e.g., a forest, a lake, etc. 

What are settlement functions?

• The functions of settlements change over time 

• The functions are the main activities which occur in a settlement

• Many settlements first start with only one function, then develop others as the settlement grows or is forced to change, for instance:

  • Liverpool, in the UK, began as a major port of trade, but this function went into decline during the 1970s with the advent of containerisation, and the Mersey was too shallow to allow large ships into dock

  • Tourism has become the major function of Liverpool's economy, focusing on The Beatles and the Merseybeat era

  • In 2008, Liverpool became the European Capital of Culture, beating other British cities such as Newcastle and Birmingham

  • The city's waterfront was designated a World Heritage Site in 2004.

    • This status was revoked in 2021 because its redevelopment didn't maintain the site’s original authenticity.

    • It lost the features which made it a maritime feature

Examples of Functions in Urban Settlements

Urban Land Use

Urban land use

• This refers to activities that are found in towns and cities

• Towns and cities tend to grow outwards, from a historic centre or core to an urban fringe

• Each zone grows due to the needs of the city during its development over time

• As a general rule, all towns and cities, regardless of place or level of development, show the same four features:

  • A central core

  • An inner-city zone

  • A suburban zone

  • An urban fringe 

Central Core

• The central core is the oldest part of a city, with features such as:

  • The central business district (CBD) e.g. banks, retail and commercial offices

  • Multi-storey development, with vertical growth rather than horizontal growth due to lack of space

  • Land of high value

  • Concentrated retail and office space

  • Pedestrianisation for high footfall

  • Convergence of public transport

  • Traffic restrictions for private vehicles

  • Low residential population

Inner city zone

• A 'frame' to the inner core which developed as the core developed

• Older, compact, terraced 'worker' housing to support a growing population density 

• Surrounded by older industrial areas

• Areas are centred around transport links and access to manufacturing

• Available land increases with distance, so costs are reduced

• Residential land is in direct competition with commercial usage

 Suburban zone

• Residential areas 

• Emergence of segregated residential zones based on wealth, ethnicity, choice or government policy (e.g. social housing)

• Semi-detached and detached housing with gardens

• Tree-lined avenues and cul-de-sacs

• Smaller retail premises

• The cost of land decreases but the size of the property increases with the distance

Urban fringe

• Outer edges of the city:

• The countryside is eroded through the urban spread/sprawl

• Housing is clustered into estates, which increases 'spot' density

• Some industrial land uses

• Accessibility is best

• Other similar characteristics of modern urban settlements include:

  • The age of the built-up area decreases from the core to the fringe

  • The density of building developments decreases from the core to the fringes

  • Grandeur, function, design and style change across the zones

  • Over time, population density and land use change

• The model above is a simplification but shows there is a core where most of the commercial activity is found

• The CBD is usually the most accessible (public transport) with the highest land value

• High-rise buildings are seen here due to the high demand for land

  • There is a lack of space to satisfy that demand, e.g. Singapore, New York and Hong Kong are known for their 'skyscrapers' and land prices are amongst the highest in the world

Settlement Hierarchy

What is a settlement hierarchy?

• The importance or significance of a settlement is determined by its place in the settlement hierarchy

• A hierarchy is when settlements are ordered and classified based on three principles:

  • Population size 

  • Number of services provided

  • Number of settlements

• The higher up the hierarchy, the fewer settlements are found 

• However, there is an increase in the:

  • Population of the settlement

  • Number of services provided 

  • Type of services

• The hierarchy follows a path: 

  • Dispersed ⇒ Hamlets ⇒ Villages ⇒ Market towns ⇒ Large towns ⇒ Cities ⇒ Conurbations ⇒ Megacities

• The result is a pyramid-shaped model, where there are more cities than megacities and more villages than towns

• All settlements offer certain functions and services

• A settlement's physical and population size will determine the number of services it offers

• The minimum number of people necessary before a particular good or service will be provided in the area is called the threshold population

• A small village or hamlet with a small population will only provide low-order services such as a post office, general store and maybe a pub

• Towns will provide low- and high-order services such as a church, medical centre, garages, schools and restaurants 

• Cities and conurbations will focus on high-order services such as leisure centres, schools, churches, chain stores and hospitals

• There are exceptions to this:

  • Some places may have more services than average, such as a small seaside resort 

  • Others may have fewer, such as a commuter or dormitory town

What are megacities?

•  Urban areas with more than 10 million inhabitants

  •  Examples: Tokyo, Delhi, Shanghai, Sao Paulo, etc.

• In 2007, more people lived in an urban environment than a rural one

• By 2050, it is thought that more than two-thirds (7 billion) of the world population will live in urban areas

• This scaling up of the urban environment is the fastest in human history

• The largest growth of megacities is seen in Asia

Reasons for the growth of megacities

• The main reasons for the rapid growth of megacities are:

  • Economic growth due to an increase in industry

  • Natural increase

  • Rural-urban migration

Urban Growth

What is urban growth?

• Urban growth is the increase in size or population of urban areas

• The growth is driven by various factors, including:

  • Economic development

  • Migration,

  • Industrialisation

  • Urban planning

• The urban growth process may be planned or spontaneous

  • Planned growth occurs when the growth of an urban settlement is carefully managed

  • Spontaneous growth occurs without planning and management

• Urban growth may have both positive and negative effects:

  • Positive effects include higher productivity, innovation, and living standards

  • Negative effects include environmental degradation, congestion, inequality and vulnerability to disasters and epidemics

• Urban growth is uneven across regions and countries, with higher levels of urbanisation in high-income countries and lower levels in low-income countries

• There are various patterns of urban growth, such as compact, sprawling, or polycentric cities

  • The patterns depend on the physical, social, and institutional factors that shape them

Factors affecting urban growth

• There are a range of factors which affect urban settlement growth, including:

  • Climate/weather

  • Agriculture

  • Industry

  • Residential

Climate/weather

• The climate and weather have an impact on the:

  • Availability of natural resources

  • Demand for energy

  • Health and comfort of the population

  • Attractiveness of the city for tourism and migration

Agriculture

• Agriculture provides food and income for the city dwellers, as well as raw materials for some industries. 

• The productivity and diversity of agriculture depends on the:

  • Soil quality

  • Water supply

  • Climatic conditions of the city

Industry 

• Industry contributes to the economic development, employment, and innovation of the city 

• The type and scale of industry depends on the availability of:

  • Labour

  • Capital

  • Infrastructure

  • Markets

• Industry also impacts the environment and public health of the city through pollution and waste generation

Residential 

• Residential refers to the housing and living conditions of the city population. 

• The growth of residential areas depends on the:

  • Population size, density

  • Income of urban dwellers

  • Preferences of urban dwellers

  • Mobility of the urban dwellers

•  Residential areas also affect the demand for public services, such as transportation, education, health care, and recreation