Will Metropolises Take Over the World?

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• Will Metropolises Take Over the World?

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What is a metropolis?

• It is a major city the chief city of a region.
• People in the surrounding region are drawn to it.
• It is a powerful urban centre with a high
  concentration of activities, services and major
  head offices.
• It is a densely populated urban area.
• It has greater economic and decision-making
  power.

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Is Sherbrooke or Trois-Rivieres a metropolis?

• No, they both have far less economic and
  decision-making power than a metropolis like
  Montreal, Toronto or New York City.

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Characteristics of a metropolis

• Downtown core
• Residential neighbourhoods
• Public parks
• Public squares
• Industrial parks
• Interchanges
• Suburbs
• Tall office buildings and apartment towers

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Metropolises have recognizable features

• Metropolises have
• Historical and modern landmarks
• Landmarks can either be natural or man-made.
• I.e. The Empire State Building in NYC, Champlain
  Bridge in Montreal are man-made landmarks.
• Mount-Royal, the island of Montreal and the St.
  Lawrence River are Physical features.

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Metropolises all around the world

• 8 out of 10 metropolises with the highest
  population (most populous) are in developing
  nations.

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Developing Nation

• A country with
• a low standard of living
• severe poverty
• low income and education levels
• high birth rate
• poorly developed social, economic, and
  technological infrastructure.
• EX Most countries in Africa, Asia (except
  Japan), Latin America, and Oceania (except
  Australia and New Zealand)

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Developed or Industrialized Nation

• A country with
• a relatively high standard of living
• high income and education levels
• lower birth rate
• well-developed social, economic, and
  technological infrastructure.
• Developed Nations Canada, U.S.A, France,
  England, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand etc.

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Northern Hemisphere vs. Southern Hemisphere

• Most countries in the Northern Hemisphere are
  developed - wealthy!
• Most countries in the Southern Hemisphere are
  developing countries really poor! (see page 9)
  

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Unequal power among metropolises

• Economically powerful metropolises are found in
  the United States, Western Europe and Asia.

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Megalopolis

• It is a stretch of several metropolises in the
  same area.
• A region made up of several large cities and
  their surrounding areas in close enough proximity
  to be considered a single urban complex.
• They form the heart of economic and global power
  run the world!
• EX New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island,
  Tokyo-Nagoya-Osaka

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Comparing and Contrasting Two (2) Metropolises
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• The previous image is the City of the Dead,
  located in Cairo, Egypt.
• The City of the Dead is a massive cemetery, which
  extends about six kilometres.
• Due to overcrowding in Cairo people have had to
  move into the cemetery.
• Overcrowding is a common problem that
  metropolises have.
• Luckily for the people in Cairo it is considered
  an honour to live among ones deceased relatives.

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• Montreal at a Glance
• Official language is French
• Population is approximately 5 million in the
  Montreal Metropolitan Area.
• Montreal is located along the St. Lawrence River.
• Montreal lies in the center of a large fertile
  plain left by the Champlain sea.
• Montreal is surrounded by a river system known as
  the St. Lawrence Seaway.
• Some of Montreals cultural features are Mount.
  Royal, Olympic Stadium, Underground city, St.
  Laurent boulevards.

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Montreal Growth

• Every year the population of Montreal increases,
  mostly due to immigration.
• Immigrants make up 28 of the population, making
  Montreal a very multiethnic city.
• This forces many people to live off-island.
• This swells the borders of the Montreal
  Metropolitan Area.

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Montreal Metropolitan Area
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• Cairo at a Glance
• Official language is Arabic
• Population is approximately 15 million
• The city of Cairo is located on both side of the
  Nile River.
• Cairo also has fertile land along the banks of
  the Nile.
• Due to its desert climate Cairo gets very little
  precipitation.
• Some cultural features are the Citadel of
  Saladin, Al-Azhar Mosque, Pyramids of Giza and
  the great Sphinx.

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Cairo Growth

• Cairos population is increasing due to migration
  from rural areas.
• Cairo has very little immigration. Therefore,
  Cairo does not have a multiethnic population.
• Due to the rapid population growth Cairos city
  limits continue to grow.

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Getting Around in Montreal

• Montreal has always been a center for water
  transportation and travel, due to its unique
  location.
• City officials have made great improvements in
  recent years to accommodate larger ships.
• Government has also built many canals and locks
  to ease the passage of ships into the St.
  Lawrence seaway.
• Along with its port Montreal has two major
  airports. P.E.T. International (flights) and
  Mirabel (cargo).

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• Due to the size of Montreals Metropolitan Area,
  people use public transportation and personal
  vehicles to get around.
• Montreal has an extensive metro, bus and commuter
  train system.
• However, the large majority, use their own
  automobiles to get around.

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What do you notice about Montreal and Cairo?

• Like Montreal, Cairo has a busy shipping port.
• Like Montreal, Cairo has an airport that
  accommodates both travellers and cargo.
• Like Montreal, Cairo does have a subway and bus
  system but they are not as extensive (as
  well-developed) as Montreal.
• Like Montreal, the majority of people use their
  cars to get around.

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• Montreal and Cairo are good examples of major
  metropolises.
• In both cities public transportation is offered.
• However, the vast majority of the population use
  their own cars.

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Major challenges for metropolises

• 1. Housing
• 2. Waste Management
• 3. Transportation

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• 1. Housing
• Finding housing is a challenge for the poor.
• Apartments are too are too often expensive, in
  disrepair or poorly situated.
• Government-subsidized housing is available to
  low-income families.
• Apartments paid for in part by the government

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Finding housing in Metropolises

• There are many factors that play a role in
  finding a suitable place to live
• Your income
• Number of children
• Proximity to public transportation
• Neighbourhood
• The environment
• Many families have chosen to live in the suburbs
  because rent is lower (low-cost housing)

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• 2. Waste Management
• Ever wonder what happens to all the waste from
  businesses and residents?
• Garbage trucks collect the trash and either
  deposit it in landfills, incinerate it, recycle
  it or convert it into compost

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Waste Management and Developing countries

• Garbage is piled up in open lots near residential
  areas.
• Poor people spend hours salvaging usable goods
  and materials they can sell

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Where does garbage go?

• HOUSEHOLD GARBAGE is brought by truck to 1 of 5
  landfills.
• Montreal Metropolitan area uses the Lachenaie
  landfill.
• Waste products harmful liquids and gases.
• This is why recycling is important
• RECYCLABLE MATERIALS is brought to a recycling
  plant.

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Where does the snow go?

• 300,000 tonnes of snow is dumped into quarries,
  sewers and disposal sites
• The melted snow (water) is pumped into the sewer
  system which then makes its way to a wastewater
  treatment center

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Where does wastewater go?

• A system of sewers transports the wastewater to
  the St. Lawrence River a few km east of Montreal.
• The wastewater is first pumped through a
  treatment plant, otherwise the river would get
  polluted.

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3. TRANSPORTATION
The vast majority of commuters living in
Metropolises such as Montreal and Cairo use their
own cars to get around the city. What issues
does this cause?

• Pollution
• Loss of Green space
• Deterioration of infrastructure.
• Traffic

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• 1. Pollution
• Acid Rain, which contaminates water and harms
  fish that we eat.
• Leads to many health problems (breathing).
• Air pollution is often referred to as smog.

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• 2. Loss of Green Space
• Cities grow in size and take over fertile farm
  land
• Animals are displaced, forced to find urban
  homes.
• Increase air pollution and CO2 levels
• 3. Deterioration of Infrastructure
• Hundreds of thousands of commuters (people that
  travel) use our roads, bridges and public transit
  on a daily basis

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Deterioration of infrastructure

• Roads and other infrastructure begin to need
  repair because of the large number of vehicles
  that pass on them
• Increased stress levels and mental health issues
• Increased taxes to pay for repairs

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• Montreal Metropolitan Area does not have beltway
  for large-sized trucks.
• Beltway
• It is a highway that encircles an urban area so
  that traffic does not have to pass through the
  center of the city.
• Heavy trucks damage concrete and asphalt,
  slow-down traffic, and cause serious accidents.

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4. Traffic

• Montreals Roadways, overpasses, bridges and
  highways are getting old and need lots of
  repairs.
• Dangerous potholes and huge cracks damage cars
  and slow down traffic.
• Traffic jams become more problematic as the
  population in the Metropolitan Area increases.
• More vehicles on our roads and ongoing road
  construction, due to aging infrastructure, cause
  traffic too.

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• Although it's cheaper and faster to take public
  transit, most people living in MMA still use
  cars. Why?

Means of Transportation Population going to work
CAR 70.4
PUBLIC TRANSIT 21.4
WALKED 5.7
BICYCLE 1.6
TAXI 0.2
MOTORCYCLE 0.1
OTHER 0.5
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• Lane closures due to road repairs and accidents
  cause traffic too.
• Some of the major highways, expressways and
  service roads in the MMA need more lanes.

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Who is affected by these issues?

• We are all affected by these issues
• Our environment
• Plants and animals living in and around major
  metropolises
• People and environments in other parts of the
  world

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Solutions to traffic-related problems

• 1. Installing tolls and making parking in the
  city expensive.
• Our current system includes buses, metros and
  commuter trains.
• 2. Public Transportation in the MMA
• The new Nova articulated LFS buses allow for more
  commuters to fit into one bus.
• 3. Promoting the usage of bikes, public transit
  and bringing back electric streetcars.