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External Urban Relational Process: Introducing Central Flow Theory to Complement Central Place Theory

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  • Peter J. Taylor

    (School of Built and Natural Environment, Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne, NEI 8ST, UK, crogfam@yahoo.com)

  • Michael Hoyler

    (Department of Geography, University of Loughborough, Loughborough, LE11 3TU, UK, m.hoyler@lboro.ac.uk)

  • Raf Verbruggen

    (Department of Geography, University of Loughborough, Loughborough, LE11 3TU, UK, r.verbruggen@lboro.ac.uk)

Abstract

Central place hierarchies have been the traditional basis for understanding external urban relations. However, in contemporary studies of these relations, a new emphasis on urban networks has emerged. Rather than either abandoning or extending central place thinking, it is here treated as representing one of two generic processes of external urban relations. Town-ness is the making of ‘local’ urban—hinterland relations and ‘city-ness’ is the making of ‘non-local’ interurban relations. Central place theory describes the former through an interlocking hierarchical model; this paper proposes a central flow theory to describe the latter through an interlocking network model. The key difference is the level of complexity in the two processes.

Suggested Citation

  • Peter J. Taylor & Michael Hoyler & Raf Verbruggen, 2010. "External Urban Relational Process: Introducing Central Flow Theory to Complement Central Place Theory," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 47(13), pages 2803-2818, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:urbstu:v:47:y:2010:i:13:p:2803-2818
    DOI: 10.1177/0042098010377367
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Christian Wichmann Matthiessen & Annette Winkel Schwarz & Søren Find, 2011. "Research Nodes and Networks," Chapters, in: David Emanuel Andersson & Åke E. Andersson & Charlotta Mellander (ed.), Handbook of Creative Cities, chapter 11, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    2. Jiao, Jingjuan & Wang, Jiaoe & Jin, Fengjun, 2017. "Impacts of high-speed rail lines on the city network in China," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 60(C), pages 257-266.
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    4. Ronald Wall & Bert van der Knaap, 2011. "Centrality, Hierarchy and Heterarchy of Worldwide Corporate Networks," Chapters, in: Ben Derudder & Michael Hoyler & Peter J. Taylor & Frank Witlox (ed.), International Handbook of Globalization and World Cities, chapter 19, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    5. Stefan Lüthi & Alain Thierstein & Michael Hoyler, 2015. "The world city network: national versus global perspective," ERSA conference papers ersa15p66, European Regional Science Association.
    6. Peter J. Taylor & Ben Derudder & James Faulconbridge & Michael Hoyler & Pengfei Ni, 2014. "Advanced Producer Service Firms as Strategic Networks, Global Cities as Strategic Places," Economic Geography, Clark University, vol. 90(3), pages 267-291, July.
    7. Evert Meijers & Martijn Burger & Evert J. Meijers & Martijn J. Burger & Marloes M. Hoogerbrugge, 2016. "Borrowing size in networks of cities: City size, network connectivity and metropolitan functions in Europe," Papers in Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 95(1), pages 181-198, March.
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    9. Ben Derudder & Michael Hoyler & Peter J. Taylor & Frank Witlox, 2011. "Introduction: A Relational Urban Studies," Chapters, in: Ben Derudder & Michael Hoyler & Peter J. Taylor & Frank Witlox (ed.), International Handbook of Globalization and World Cities, chapter 1, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    10. Juan Eduardo Chica & Carlos Marmolejo, 2016. "Knowledge economy and metropolitan growth: Barcelona and Helsinki metropolitan areas as case studies," International Journal of Knowledge-Based Development, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 7(1), pages 22-42.
    11. Wenqian Ke & Wei Chen & Zhaoyuan Yu, 2017. "Uncovering Spatial Structures of Regional City Networks from Expressway Traffic Flow Data: A Case Study from Jiangsu Province, China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(9), pages 1-16, August.
    12. Virginie Mamadouh & Luiza Bialasiewicz & Anna Growe & Kati Volgmann, 2016. "Exploring Cosmopolitanity and Connectivity in The Polycentric German Urban System," Tijdschrift voor Economische en Sociale Geografie, Royal Dutch Geographical Society KNAG, vol. 107(2), pages 214-231, April.
    13. Daniel Knitter & Oliver Nakoinz, 2018. "The Relative Concentration of Interaction—A Proposal for an Integrated Understanding of Centrality and Central Places," Land, MDPI, vol. 7(3), pages 1-18, July.
    14. Michael E. Smith & Jason Ur & Gary M. Feinman, 2014. "Jane Jacobs' ‘Cities First’ Model and Archaeological Reality," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 38(4), pages 1525-1535, July.
    15. Derek Doran & Andrew Fox, 2016. "Operationalizing Central Place and Central Flow Theory With Mobile Phone Data," Annals of Data Science, Springer, vol. 3(1), pages 1-24, March.
    16. Peter J. Taylor, 2014. "Competition and cooperation between cities in globalization," Chapters, in: Pengfei Ni & Zheng Qiongjie (ed.), Urban Competitiveness and Innovation, chapter 9, pages 139-156, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    17. Peter J. Taylor, 2011. "The Interlocking Network Model," Chapters, in: Ben Derudder & Michael Hoyler & Peter J. Taylor & Frank Witlox (ed.), International Handbook of Globalization and World Cities, chapter 6, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    18. Xingjian Liu & Xiaohui Hu, 2018. "Are ‘Sister Cities’ from ‘Sister Provinces’? An Exploratory Study of Sister City Relations (SCRs) in China," Networks and Spatial Economics, Springer, vol. 18(3), pages 473-491, September.
    19. Jennifer M. Webb, 2018. "Shifting Centres: Site Location and Resource Procurement on the North Coast of Cyprus over the Longue Durée of the Prehistoric Bronze Age," Land, MDPI, vol. 7(2), pages 1-31, May.
    20. Shiwei Lu & Yaping Huang & Zhiyuan Zhao & Xiping Yang, 2018. "Exploring the Hierarchical Structure of China’s Railway Network from 2008 to 2017," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(9), pages 1-15, September.
    21. Peter J. Taylor, 2015. "Post-Childe, Post-Wirth: Response to Smith, Ur and Feinman," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 39(1), pages 168-171, January.
    22. Peter J. Taylor, 2011. "On City Cooperation and City Competition," Chapters, in: Ben Derudder & Michael Hoyler & Peter J. Taylor & Frank Witlox (ed.), International Handbook of Globalization and World Cities, chapter 7, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    23. Ducruet, César & Cuyala, Sylvain & El Hosni, Ali, 2018. "Maritime networks as systems of cities: The long-term interdependencies between global shipping flows and urban development (1890–2010)," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 66(C), pages 340-355.
    24. Anna-Katharina Rieger, 2018. "‘Un-Central’ Landscapes of NE-Africa and W-Asia—Landscape Archaeology as a Tool for Socio-Economic History in Arid Landscapes," Land, MDPI, vol. 8(1), pages 1-29, December.
    25. Kathy Pain, 2011. "Spatial Transformations of Cities: Global City-region? Mega-city Region?," Chapters, in: Ben Derudder & Michael Hoyler & Peter J. Taylor & Frank Witlox (ed.), International Handbook of Globalization and World Cities, chapter 9, Edward Elgar Publishing.

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