The transfrontier organization of space along the U.S.-Mexico border

Abstract

The transfrontier dimensions of urban space in the U.S.-Mexico international border have not been extensively researched. The growth of large cities along the boundary, and the emerging high-volume patterns of transborder social, economic, and functional interaction, call for a better understanding of the unique spatial formations that are evolving in this region. We might term these spatial configurations ‘international border metropoli’, a fusion of settlements from two cultures into a single spatial domain. Transfrontier urban phenomena tend to somewhat alter the significance of the international boundary line. Using the San Diego-Tijuana region as a case study, evidence of transboundary spatial integration is reviewed. Special attention is given to patterns of transborder travel. Data extracted from a survey of Mexican border crossers allow for an examination of both the volume and the form of transboundary, intraurban linkages that connect and unify border settlements like San Diego and Tijuana.