Suburbanisation

Suburbanization is a population shift from central urban areas into suburbs, resulting in formation of (sub)urban sprawl. Sub-urbanization is inversely related to urbanization, which denotes population shift from rural areas into urban centres.

Many residents of metropolitan regions work within the central urban area, and choose to live in satellite communities called suburbs and commute to work via automobile or mass transit. Others have taken advantage of technological advances to work from their homes. These processes often occur in more economically developed countries, especially in the United States, which is believed to be the first country in which the majority of the population lives in the suburbs, rather than in the cities or in rural areas. Proponents of containing urban sprawl argue that sprawl leads to urban decay and a concentration of lower income residents in the inner city.

In the United States, suburbanization began to occur in mass amounts after World War II when soldiers returned home from war and wanted to live in houses outside of the city. During this time America had a prosperous postwar economy and there was more leisure time available and an in creating a family unit. Throughout the years, the desire to separate work life and home life has increased causing an increase in suburban populations. Suburbs are built for particular groups of people and around certain industries like restaurants, shopping, and entertainment which allows suburban residents to travel less and interact more in the suburban area. Suburbs in the United States have also evolved by increases in technology which allows residents to work from home rather than commute.

Recent developments in communication technology, such as the spread of broadband services, the growth of e-mail and the advent of practical home video conferencing, has enabled more people to work from home rather than commuting. Although this can occur either in the city or in the suburbs, the effect is generally decentralizing, which works against the largest advantage of the centre city, which is easier access to information and supplies due to centralization. Similarly, the rise of efficient package express delivery systems, such as FedEx and UPS, which take advantage of computerization and the availability of an efficient air transportation system, also eliminates some of the advantages that were once to be had from having a business located in the city. Industrial, warehousing, and factory land uses have also moved to suburban areas. Cheap telecommunications removes the need for company headquarters to be within quick courier distance of the warehouses and ports. Urban areas suffer from traffic congestion, which creates costs in extra driver costs for the company which can be reduced if they were in a suburban area near a highway. As with residential, lower property taxes and low land prices encourage selling industrial land for profitable brownfield redevelopment.

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