Metropolitan area

This article is about densely populated regions. For the core of such regions, see Metropolis. For other uses, see Metropolitan (disambiguation).

"Metro area" redirects here. For the dance music duo, see Metro Area.

Error creating thumbnail: File missing

Satellite imagery showing the New York metropolitan area at night. Long Island extends to the east of the central core of Manhattan.

A metropolitan area or metro is a region consisting of a densely populated urban core and its less-populated surrounding territories sharing industries, commercial areas, transport network, infrastructures and housing. A metro area usually comprises multiple jurisdictions and municipalities: neighborhoods, townships, boroughs, cities, towns, exurbs, suburbs, counties, districts, and even states and nations like the eurodistricts. As social, economic and political institutions have changed, metropolitan areas have become key economic and political regions.

Metropolitan areas include satellite cities, towns and intervening rural areas that are socioeconomically tied to the urban core, typically measured by commuting patterns. Most metropolitan areas are anchored by one core city such as Paris metropolitan area (Paris), Mumbai Metropolitan Region (Mumbai (Bombay)), and New York metropolitan area (New York City). In some cases metropolitan areas have multiple centers of close to equal importance, such as Dallas–Fort Worth metropolitan area (Dallas and Fort Worth), Islamabad–Rawalpindi metropolitan area (Islamabad and Rawalpindi), the Rhine-Ruhr in Germany and the Randstad in the Netherlands.

In the United States, the concept of the metropolitan statistical area has gained prominence. Metropolitan areas may themselves be part of larger megalopolises. For urban centres outside metropolitan areas, that generate a similar attraction at smaller scale for their region, the concept of the regiopolis and respectively regiopolitan area or regio was introduced by German professors in 2006. In the United States, the term micropolitan statistical area is used.

General definition

A metropolitan area combines an urban agglomeration (the contiguous, built-up area) with zones not necessarily urban in character, but 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, Islip, 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 area 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, although significant changes in geographic distributions have occurred since then, and more are expected. 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 surrounding suburban, exurban and sometimes rural areas, all which it 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.

See also the many lists of metropolitan areas itemized at Template:See section.

Australia

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 labour markets, using the 2011 Census "travel to work" data. Labour 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.

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. The following are such conurbations-

Albury-Wodonga

Canberra-Queanbeyan

Newcastle-Sydney-Wollongong

Perth Metropolitan Region-City of Mandurah-Pinjarra

South East Queensland

Melbourne-Geelong

Bangladesh

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. 4 of them (Dhaka North City Corporation, Dhaka South City Corporation, Narayanganj City Corporation, Gazipur City Corporation) are part of Greater Dhaka Conurbation .

Brazil

Main article: List of metropolitan areas in Brazil

In Brazil, "Metropolitan Regions", "Integrated Development Areas", and "Urban Agglomerations" are created by statute. Each state defines its own legislation for the creation, definition and organization of a metropolitan region. The creation of a metropolitan region is not for any statistical purpose, although the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE) uses them in reports. Their main purpose is to improve management of public policies of common interest to all municipalities included within. They do not have any political, electoral or jurisdictional power whatsoever, so citizens do not elect representatives for them.

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". 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.

Canada

Statistics Canada defines a census metropolitan area (CMA) as an area consisting of one or more adjacent municipalities situated around a major urban core. To form a CMA, the metropolitan area must have a population of at least 100,000, at least half within the urban core. To be included in the CMA, adjacent municipalities must have a high degree of integration with the core, as measured by commuter flows derived from census data.

China

In Chinese, 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 (关于培育发展现代化都市圈的指导意见) 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."

European Union

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".

France

See also: Urban area (France)

France's national statistics institute, the INSEE, names an urban core and its surrounding area of commuter influence an aire urbaine (official translation: "urban area"). This statistical method applies to agglomerations of all sizes, but the INSEE sometimes uses the term aire métropolitaine (metropolitan area) to refer to France's largest aires urbaines.

Germany

See also: Metropolitan regions in Germany

In German definition, metropolitan areas are eleven 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 centres of the country.

For urban centres outside metropolitan areas, that generate a similar attraction at smaller scale for their region, the concept of the Regiopolis and respectively regiopolitan area or regio was introduced by German professors in 2006.