From metropolis to metropolis-based Region: The case of Tel-Aviv

The decreasing relative importance of major metropolitan areas in the distribution of population and economic activity within many nations of the developed world raises questions about the emergence of agglomeration diseconomies and the associated changes in spatial structure. Here, we explore the thesis that a metropolis-based region (MBR), comprising the metropolis and a surrounding territory, has come to replace the metropolis as the appropriate unit of analysis for tracking such developments. Using data covering the past 22 years for the Tel-Aviv MBR, various indicators are estimated. These include national and regional deconcentration (both measured in terms of population and employment), as well as centrality, dependence, attractiveness and integration (measured in terms of employment). The main results of the analysis include the following: the need to view metropolitan stagnation and deconcentration within the wider context of the MBR; employment deconcentration occurring at a slower rate than population deconcentration, leading to increasing levels of employment centrality within the MBR; the process of consolidation within the MBR, accompanied by a strengthening of its economic role within the nation.