The Munich Metropolitan region (MMR) features a radial transportation system as well as a high concentration of jobs and population in the core city of Munich. Morphologically speaking, it is hence a rather monocentric space. Concentration in one central large-scale urban region causes uneven spatial development, and thus a continuous increase in spatial disparities. This development is accompanied by a shortage of affordable housing in central locations and results in distinct consequences on daily mobility. Polycentricity might contribute to more balanced and more sustainable mobility, but requires better allocation of local urban amenities as well as public transport connections linking nodes tangentially. From a relational perspective, the MMR shows potential for developing polycentric features.
In recent years, structural change towards functional polycentricity has become part of the agenda in regional planning and development discussions. Municipalities, enterprises, and service providers aim at improving intra-regional cooperation to join resources. Supra-local cooperative efforts hence call for thorough analytical knowledge about location choices regarding employment and housing as well as transport networks, and how these three structural dimensions interact with each other over time.
This paper introduces a study that aims to understand this complex interplay and process of transformation within the MMR. The study combines a macro-perspective analysis of indicators of socioeconomic structures and spatial accessibility with the micro level of individuals who face decisions where to live, where to work and how to optimize their daily mobility patterns. Households that have moved or changed jobs within the last three years were asked to reveal their location preferences in a web based survey. The respondents geo-referenced their present and former places of work and residence, assessed qualities of
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alternative locations, and revealed tradeoff motifs, income, as well as housing costs. The respondents faced three situations: before the move or job change, during the search for alternative housing, and after the move or job change. A key hypothesis assumes that households aim to optimize distance and transportation costs between residence and work place. This may lead to growth at highly connected urban nodes with good public transport access. However, in case of high housing costs, dispersion into less integrated parts with relatively low rents might be the outcome. The study’s results are intended to provide a thorough base for strategic debates on promoting integrated nodes of urban development and provision of public transport infrastructure.
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The Munich Metropolitan region (MMR) features a radial transportation system as well as a high concentration of jobs and population in the core city of Munich. Morphologically speaking, it is hence a rather monocentric space. Concentration in one central large-scale urban region causes uneven spatial development, and thus a continuous increase in spatial disparities. This development is accompanied by a shortage of affordable housing in central locations and results in distinct consequences on d...
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