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I think 1 is a bit misleading because it shows city populations and not metro area population. You get cities like Miami and Atlanta in the top 10 by growth rat

I think 1 is a bit misleading because it shows city populations and not metro area population. You get cities like Miami and Atlanta in the top 10 by growth rate that look like mid size cities but are actually in the top ten largest metro areas in the US.

briHass 8y ago
Maybe, but I think the concept of metro areas doesn't help much when trying to define people moving from small towns to cities. For example, the Philadelphia metro area has over 6 million residents, while the city itself has only about 1.6. Problem is, the metro area includes extremely rural and small towns within about a 1-2 hour drive of the center of the city [1]. I'm not sure I'd consider someone living in exurban/rural Chester or Montgomery counties, 50 miles from the city, to be living in Philly. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delaware_Valley https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delaware_Valley
- learc83 8y ago
  Using the population within city limits to measure, rank, or even describe a city isn't very helpful because city limits are completely arbitrary. Metro areas, while still arbitrary are much less so. Take Atlanta--everyone who lives here considers Atlanta to be anything inside the perimeter (I-285), and the urban population is about 4.5 million, but the city limits only cover half of that area (~130 square miles) and include only about 400k people. Then you have Sitka, Alaska that covers almost 3k square miles, while the urban center is only 2 square miles. >rural and small towns within about a 1-2 hour drive of the center of the city According to this, the vast majority of the metro area is within 1 hour. https://app.traveltimeplatform.com/#/search/0_lng=-75.16843&0_tt=60&0_mode=driving&0_title=Philadelphia%2C%20PA%2C%20USA&0_lat=39.99082 https://app.traveltimeplatform.com/#/search/0_lng=-75.16843&... >I'm not sure I'd consider someone living in exurban/rural Chester or Montgomery counties, 50 miles from the city, to be living in Philly. The number of people living in rural areas is small compared to the people living in closer more densely populated areas. Subtract 10-20% from the population numbers to account for them and you still have a number more useful and less arbitrary than population within city limits.

briHass 8y ago

Maybe, but I think the concept of metro areas doesn't help much when trying to define people moving from small towns to cities. For example, the Philadelphia metro area has over 6 million residents, while the city itself has only about 1.6. Problem is, the metro area includes extremely rural and small towns within about a 1-2 hour drive of the center of the city [1]. I'm not sure I'd consider someone living in exurban/rural Chester or Montgomery counties, 50 miles from the city, to be living in Philly. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delaware_Valley https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delaware_Valley

learc83 8y ago
Using the population within city limits to measure, rank, or even describe a city isn't very helpful because city limits are completely arbitrary. Metro areas, while still arbitrary are much less so. Take Atlanta--everyone who lives here considers Atlanta to be anything inside the perimeter (I-285), and the urban population is about 4.5 million, but the city limits only cover half of that area (~130 square miles) and include only about 400k people. Then you have Sitka, Alaska that covers almost 3k square miles, while the urban center is only 2 square miles. >rural and small towns within about a 1-2 hour drive of the center of the city According to this, the vast majority of the metro area is within 1 hour. https://app.traveltimeplatform.com/#/search/0_lng=-75.16843&0_tt=60&0_mode=driving&0_title=Philadelphia%2C%20PA%2C%20USA&0_lat=39.99082 https://app.traveltimeplatform.com/#/search/0_lng=-75.16843&... >I'm not sure I'd consider someone living in exurban/rural Chester or Montgomery counties, 50 miles from the city, to be living in Philly. The number of people living in rural areas is small compared to the people living in closer more densely populated areas. Subtract 10-20% from the population numbers to account for them and you still have a number more useful and less arbitrary than population within city limits.