Various Causes of Urban Growth
- The natural increase in population
The rate of death and births characterizes the natural expansion of an area. In areas where births are more than the deaths, the population is bound to increase. People who migrate to town and cities tend to be young people who are in search of housing, jobs, or better education.
- Migration
Immigration is a major contributor to the increase in the population of a place. Many people are forced to move to urban areas in search of jobs, education, and housing. Inadequate funding and social infrastructure have also driven people to urban areas. In other cases, political, racial, economic, or religious conflicts have forced people to move to neighbor urban areas.
- Industrialization
The industrial revolution brought about new production techniques. By this, manufacturing has created more job opportunities by providing people with the opportunity to be employed in new sectors.
- Commercialization
Whereas industrialization has played an essential role in the growth of urban areas, commerce and trade have profoundly influenced the growth of cities. In ancient times, cities like Athens, Sparta, and Venice were great commercial centers. In modern life today, the commercial activities in city and industrial areas continue to attract more and more people as traders and workers, thereby contributing to the growth of cities and town areas. Businesspeople prefer going to the cities to sell their commodities and in search of higher profits. The kind of economic pull urban centers have is one that attracts more and more people to move to urban areas.
- Advancement of transport and communication
When factories were introduced, the local transportation was weak, forcing the factory laborers to reside near their place of work. The cities were partitioned into dwelling areas, market area, factory area, slums, and so on. Increased population led to congestion of housing and added to the already existing community by extension of boundaries.
- Availability of educational and recreational facilities
Most training institutions, colleges, elementary schools, and technical institutions are in urban areas. Also, most libraries are located in the cities. Recruiting agencies, as well as the examination councils, are situated in the cities. Clearly, due to the location of these facilities, most students and adult learners are attracted to the town for easy accessibility of higher education. Opera and Amusement Theaters are also in urban areas, drawing more people to the cities.
- Urban planning policies
Urban planning typically forces city leaders to find ways of making a sustainable city, including proper town development and expansion plans. As a strategy aimed at converting vision into implementation, it acts as a guide for making the most out of a city by improving infrastructure and building its economic growth and enhancing the city’s living standards as well as the resident’s well-being.
- Topographical factors
The topography of an area can have huge impacts on the growth of a city. An area with a suitable topography is usually easy to develop and expand. Urban areas in or around an excellent topographical area are easily extended and refined, thus drawing more people to such areas.
- Unbalanced spatial development
In many countries around the world, there are developed regions and less developed regions. Many people tend to move to more developed areas. Occasionally, urban centers (cities) are more developed than rural areas because of the available facilities and opportunities offered in urban areas. On this account, the population and size of the metropolitan area will automatically increase within a given period.
- Transformation and modernization in the way of living
Transformation and modernization play a very significant role in attracting people to the cities. As technology improves, together with highly sophisticated infrastructure, liberation, communication, dressing code, medical facilities, and other social services offered; people tend to believe they can live a more comfortable life in the cities.
- Mining and investments
As more urban areas continue being successful and well-off due to the discovery of minerals, resource exploitation, agricultural activities, or business operations, urban areas continue to grow economically. Societies continue being financially liberal due to the availability of jobs in urban areas. As a result, more investors are attracted to invest in such cities, promoting their growth.
- Presence of functional administrative and social support offices
The presence of administration dominance in an urban center promotes its growth. Many cities today hold offices for various administration and governance functions, which influence people to live in these areas for access to better governance and social amenities like security, sanitation, housing, education, and healthcare.
