Megalopolis (term)

Encyclopedia : M : ME : MEG : Megalopolis (term)

Megacity or "megapolis", is defined as an extensively large metropolitan area, or a long chain of continuous metropolitan areas. The term was first used in the United States by Jean Gottmann in 1957, to describe the huge urban area along the eastern seaboard of the U.S. from Boston, Massachusetts to Washington, D.C. According to Gottmann, it resulted from changes in work and social habits. See also: BosWash, ChiPitts, Quebec City-Windsor Corridor, SanSan, and Bajalta California. Other megalopolis is Rio de Janeiro - Sao Paulo - Campinas, in Brazil, which holds almost 30 million habitants. An example of a developing megalopolis is the area of the American south stretching from the Dallas Metro Area south to Houston, east to Lake Charles and north to Shreveport-Bossier City-Texarkana area. With a population of approximately 13.5 million, this area is well on its way to becoming a megalopolis.

Used in the study of Urban Affairs as a term to link the CMSAs of Boston, New Haven (Urban Connecticut), New York City, New Jersey (Camden, Hoboken, Jersey City, Newark, Paterson, and Trenton), Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington D.C.

The Pittsburgh-Chicago Corridor is a similar Urban Studies term that describes the area running through the Rustbelt from the Mid-Atlantic to the Western Great Lakes.

The Steel City Corridor ideally describes the area connecting Cleveland to Pittsburgh via Youngstown-Warren (OH), and Sharon-Farrell-New Castle (PA). Historically, these areas are known as the Steel Valleys (Mahoning and Shenango).