3. THE FUNCTIONS AND STRUCTURE OF CITIES URBAN FUNCTIONS -
Residential: -
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Political: -
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Examples: Mumbai in India, Okinawa in Japan, and Shanghai in China.
Cultural: -
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Some cities grew due to their role in international trade (Liverpool, Bilbao‌)
Industrial -
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Political institutions were set up in national or regional capitals. (Brussels, Strasbourg, New York‌)
Commercial: -
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Places where large numbers of people live.
Some of them have educational importance (Oxford and Salamanca) Others have religious significance (Mecca and Jerusalem)
Tourist: -
Cities with monuments and museums (Venice and Florence).
*But most cities do not have a single function: Rome is a national capital with a residential function, but it is also a commercial city, a place of religious importance and a cultural and tourist destination.
3. THE FUNCTIONS AND STRUCTURE OF CITIES THE STRUCTURE OF A CITY - The structure of a city : - It is the way its buildings, roads and open spaces are organised. - It is influenced by its physical environment. - The urban layout of a city is connected to its historical development . It is reresented on an urban plan. -There are three comon types: 1.
Irregular: - Streets are narrow and winding - they are not arrange in any order - this plan is characteristic of Medieval cities.
2.
Grid: - Streets run in straight lines and cross each other at right angles to form a grid pattern. - This plan was characteristic of ancient Roman cities. - Later, it became common in new cities in Latin America and North America.
3.
Concentric: - In some cities, streets radiate outwards from a central square. - other streets cross them to form concentric circles.
3. THE FUNCTIONS AND STRUCTURE OF CITIES 1.
There are some cities with a complex layout, combining different features. This reflects their expansion over a long period of time:
Historic centre: - This is the original centre of he city. - Monuments and historic buildings are located. - In Mediaeval cities the centre have narrow and winding streets. - In recently developed urban areas , he historic centres have been replaced by a central business district (or CBD). 2. City extensions (or ensanches): - They were built as residential districts in the 19 th century. - Shops and services are found in city extensions - Blocks of flats are a common type of housing. 3. Suburbs: - They are separate residential areas located on the outskirts of cities. - They have single-family homes as well as blocks of flats. - Their green spaces make them attractive places to live in. - Industrial parks and shopping centres are built near these areas.