Methodological Approaches to the Delimitation of the Boundaries of the Moscow Agglomeration Based on Data from Mobile Network Operators

Abstract

The article highlights the boundaries of the Moscow agglomeration and analyzes its spatial structure using approaches involving the concept of time geography. The study is based on a methodology for determining functional urban areas of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD); mobile operators data on the localization of network users are applied. The analysis showed the impossibility of using the OECD methodology without adaptation to Russian conditions. This is because, according to this methodology, the entire territory of a “real city,” including the “bedroom districts” of Moscow and its satellite towns, lies in the core zone. Meanwhile, the suburban zone extends to the territory of almost all of Moscow oblast, in many directions beyond its borders. The proposed adapted variant of the delimitation methodology involves a reduction in the size of the core to the borders of the Moscow Ring Road (MKAD) with a corresponding decrease in the boundaries of the suburban zone. This is consistent with the approaches and ideas prevailing in Russian practice. Using the methodology of the spatiotemporal approach (concept of time geography), a “pulsating agglomeration” model was developed. This model is a way of studying and analyzing the dynamics of socioeconomic functioning of agglomerations, taking into account the different socioeconomic rhythms of the agglomeration. As part of the agglomeration, “static” (constant throughout the year) and “mobile” (seasonal) parts of the suburban area were distinguished. This allowed us to include in the analysis of “pulsation” not only the population of the structural elements of the agglomeration, but also its borders, depending on the seasons of the year.