In this study the 1992, 1995, 1999, and 2002 Netherlands National Travel Surveys are employed to examine the change in the level of hierarchy in the urban system on the basis of commute flows between twenty-three urban areas in the Netherlands. The change in urban hierarchy has been analysed through four dimensions of spatial interaction: strength, connectivity, symmetry, and hierarchy. The urban system can be described as having a polycentric structure. The results provide evidence of a decline in the level of hierarchy in the Dutch urban system for commuting flows over the ten-year period. Friction of physical distances still plays an important role in the urban development process. The result also suggests that the spatial integration process has taken place in the national urban system, but very slowly. (Author/publisher)
Samenvatting