Urban Theory

Burgess Model

Concentric Rings

Urban Transect

Hoyt Model

Central Business District (CBD)

• As land values increase towards the city centre buildings become higher. It is cheaper to build upwards than across

• Has the departmental shops, large offices, main railway and bus stations, many churches, pubs, clubs and cinemas and the town hall

• The main roads head into the C.B.D.

• C.B.D.s suffer from the worst traffic congestion

Inner-city• Old factories and houses are

mixed in together as they were built when most people walked to work

• Housing is usually terraced housing, in rows

• There are often empty buildings, derelict land, vandalism, crime, poverty, unemployment and other social and economic problems

• Recent changes have taken place in these areas; many high rise multi-storey residential blocks of flats have been built

Suburbs• Younger buildings than in the

middle of the city • Cul-de-sacs (dead ends) slow

down traffic to make the streets safer

• More detached and semi-detached houses; as the land is less expensive people have gardens

• Fewer factories than the inner city

• More open space and parks• Many people travel from here to

the city for work• Less pollution than the centre of

the city

Rural-Urban Fringe

• This is on the boundary of the town and country

• As towns and cities expand, more countryside is being used for housing

• Only possible as most houses now have at least one car

• There are also out-of-town shopping centres and supermarkets