U.S. suburbanization in the 1980s

Abstract

This paper measures and analyzes differences in rates of suburbanization during the 1980s among U.S. metropolitan areas which fit a monocentric urban model. Three findings are of interest: (1) the average rate of suburbanization for U.S. metropolitan areas was the same in the 1980s and the 1970s; (2) the monocentric urban model provides a good description of population distribution for a diminishing number of urban areas; and (3) variables that characterize the entire metropolitan area as well as those that measure disparities between the central city and its suburban ring are important in explaining differences in rates of decentralization.