Post 10

Planning Metropolitan Regions

Gary Hack

With new development happening consistently within cities it is becoming increasingly hard to distinguish where one city starts and ends such as Osaka-Tokyo. Combined with this issue of defining the metropolitan region is mixing the new and established development to have a dynamic flow through the region of community, transportation, access, housing, and industry to create a mixed use centre.

The Greater City of Sydney is an Australian example of a Metropolitan region which does have processes of urban consolidation taking place but also is continuing to sprawl outwards. With telecommunications becoming increasingly accessible it is evident that people in the Blue Mountains, Central Coast and South Coast are able to work in the week partly from home and partly in the city as they have become increasingly connected to Sydney. The map below indicates what is classified as the Greater City of Sydney. Penrith was once considered to be the most Western region of Sydney being on the peri urban fringe. As Sydney’s pressures increase, so will the demand on the Greater City of Sydney as it expands. Pressures on the Greater Western City of Sydney are shown through Penrith, Katoomba and Lithgow in this link. http://www.crlra.utas.edu.au/files/rolevet2/Penrith.PDF

The map indicates the growth of Sydney and it needs and resources ever expanding.

http://www.sydney-australia.biz/maps/greater-sydney-map.php

The challenge for the present and into the future is to combine the land-usage, and utilise the space in a way that creates highly functional regions. With Sydney continuing to sprawl this means sub-centres which need to flow on from established centres on that region. Planning for Metropolitan regions has great potential if we start planning now and not tomorrow!