Metropolitan areas of Mexico

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A map showing the location of the metropolitan areas in Mexico in 2004. Metropolitan Areas of Mexico.svg
A map showing the location of the metropolitan areas in Mexico in 2004.

Metropolitan areas of Mexico have been traditionally defined as the group of municipalities that heavily interact with each other, usually around a core city, in Mexico. The phenomenon of metropolization in Mexico is relatively recent, starting in the 1940s. [1] Because of an accelerated level of urbanization in the country, the definition of a metropolitan area (in Mexican Spanish: zona metropolitana) is reviewed periodically by the Mexican population and census authorities.

Contents

Identifying metropolitan areas in Mexico

One of the first studies on a methodology to define and quantify the metropolitan areas in Mexico was published by El Colegio de México in 1978. In Luis Unikel's book "Urban Development in Mexico: Diagnosis and Future Implications", a metropolitan area was designated as "the territorial area that includes the political and administrative units from a central city, and any contiguous, urban political and administrative units with a direct socioeconomic interrelation with the central city, and viceversa". 12 metropolitan areas were identified, containing 25.6 percent of the national population. [2]

A 1993 study published by Mexico's National Institute of Public Administration (INAP), "Metropolitan and Regional Government and Management", defined a metropolitan area as "the physical or functional union of two or more municipalities that contain a central city and its contiguous locations, or a central city and surrounding locations under its socio-economic influence", and increased the number of metropolitan areas to 37. [1]

In 2004, a joint effort between the National Population Council (CONAPO), INEGI and the Ministry of Social Development (SEDESOL) agreed to officially define metropolitan areas as any of the following: [3]

The number of metropolitan areas increased to 55 under these criteria.

CONAPO last reviewed the criteria in 2018, and from that date, a metropolitan area in Mexico is defined as: [4]

These new criteria also introduced two groups of municipalities within a metropolitan area: core, the location of the core city or cities in the area; and peripheral, surrounding, urban areas with high degree of integration with the core. [4]

As per this last definition, there are currently 74 metropolitan areas in Mexico. 75.1 million people, 62.8 percent of the country population, live within a metropolitan area. [4]

Metropolitan areas beyond municipal borders

Map of Greater Mexico City, the largest metropolitan area in the country Mexico City Metropolitan Area Map.svg
Map of Greater Mexico City, the largest metropolitan area in the country

Northern states are generally divided into a small number of large municipalities, whereas central and southern states are divided into a large number of smaller municipalities. As such, metropolitan areas in the north of the country cover fewer municipalities than those in the central and southern parts.

A few metropolitan areas extend beyond the limits of one state, like Greater Mexico City (Mexico City, Mexico and Hidalgo), La Laguna (Coahuila and Durango), and Tampico (Tamaulipas and Veracruz).

Financial situation of metropolitan areas in Mexico

Determining the public finance of metropolitan areas in Mexico has been challenging. Metropolitan areas in Mexico are complex in terms of population and industry. The Federal government of Mexico is transferring money to Municipalities of Mexico, but metropolitan areas in Mexico are increasingly plagued by a weakening fiscal capacity and rising local debt. The political factors that undermine a local tax reform in the metropolitan areas of Mexico are not well documented. [5]

List of metropolitan areas in Mexico by population

Official name of each metropolitan area, area in square kilometers and number of municipalities from CONAPO. [4]

Population in 2020 from the 2020 Census, [6] population in 2010 from the 2010 Census. [7]

Rank Metropolitan area State(s) Main citiesMunicip.Area (km2)2020 Census2010 CensusChange
1 Greater Mexico City Mexico City, Mexico, Hidalgo Mexico City, Ecatepec, Nezahualcóyotl 767,866.121,804,51520,116,842+8.39%
2 Monterrey Nuevo León Monterrey, Guadalupe, Apodaca 187,657.55,341,1714,226,031+26.39%
3 Guadalajara Jalisco Guadalajara, Zapopan, Tlaquepaque 103,560.65,286,6424,521,755+16.92%
4 Puebla-Tlaxcala Puebla, Tlaxcala Puebla, Cholula, Tlaxcalancingo 392,392.43,199,5302,728,790+17.25%
5 Toluca Mexico Toluca, Metepec, Zinacantepec 162,410.52,353,9242,014,091+16.87%
6 Tijuana Baja California Tijuana, Tecate, Playas de Rosarito 34,422.72,157,8531,751,430+23.21%
7 León Guanajuato León, Silao 21,760.11,924,7711,609,504+19.59%
8 Querétaro Querétaro, Guanajuato Querétaro, El Pueblito, Apaseo el Alto 52,427.31,594,2121,161,458+37.26%
9 Juárez Chihuahua Ciudad Juárez 13,547.51,512,4501,332,131+13.54%
10 La Laguna Coahuila, Durango Torreón, Gómez Palacio, Lerdo 57,889.01,434,2831,271,493+12.80%
11 Mérida Yucatán Mérida, Kanasín 113,044.21,316,0881,053,519+24.92%
12 San Luis Potosí San Luis Potosí San Luis Potosí, Soledad 32,401.91,271,3661,040,822+22.15%
13 Aguascalientes Aguascalientes Aguascalientes, Jesús María 31,822.31,225,432932,369+31.43%
14 Mexicali Baja California Mexicali 115,654.01,049,792936,826+12.06%
15 Saltillo Coahuila Saltillo, Ramos Arizpe 314,009.31,031,779823,128+25.35%
16 Cuernavaca Morelos Cuernavaca, Jiutepec, Temixco 81,189.91,028,589924,964+11.20%
17 Culiacán Sinaloa Culiacán 16,305.01,003,530858,638+16.87%
18 Morelia Michoacán Morelia 31,771.2988,704829,625+19.17%
19 Chihuahua Chihuahua Chihuahua 318,093.7988,065852,533+15.90%
20 Veracruz Veracruz Veracruz, Boca del Río 61,888.8939,046811,671+15.69%
21 Hermosillo Sonora Hermosillo 116,955.2936,263784,342+19.37%
22 Cancún Quintana Roo Cancún 23,053.6934,189677,379+37.91%
23 Tampico Tamaulipas, Veracruz Tampico, Ciudad Madero, Miramar 55,281.7927,379859,419+7.91%
24 Acapulco Guerrero Acapulco 23,538.5852,622863,431−1.25%
25 Tuxtla Gutiérrez Chiapas Tuxtla Gutiérrez, Chiapa de Corzo 52,160.9848,274738,261+14.90%
26 Reynosa Tamaulipas Reynosa, Río Bravo 24,730.6837,251727,150+15.14%
27 Villahermosa Tabasco Villahermosa 22,253.1833,907755,425+10.39%
28 Xalapa Veracruz Xalapa, Coatepec 81,090.0778,139711,369+9.39%
29 Celaya Guanajuato Celaya, Cortázar, Comonfort 41,505.4767,104690,442+11.10%
30 Oaxaca Oaxaca Oaxaca, Xoxocotlán 24634.0713,925619,367+15.27%
31 Durango Durango Durango 19,285.4688,697582,267+18.28%
32 Pachuca Hidalgo Pachuca 71,184.8665,929512,196+30.01%
33 Tlaxcala – Apizaco Tlaxcala Apizaco, Chiautempan, Tlaxcala 19708.1570,308499,567+14.16%
34 Matamoros Tamaulipas Matamoros 14,633.2541,979489,193+10.79%
35 Poza Rica Veracruz Poza Rica, Coatzintla, Papantla 52,789.0521,530513,518+1.56%
36 Mazatlán Sinaloa Mazatlán 12,532.6501,441438,434+14.37%
37 Tepic Nayarit Tepic, Xalisco 22,139.0491,153429,351+14.39%
38 Cuautla Morelos Cuautla, Yautepec 6979.6483,455434,147+11.36%
39 Puerto Vallarta Jalisco, Nayarit Puerto Vallarta, Valle de Banderas 21,452.2479,471379,886+26.21%
40 Orizaba Veracruz Orizaba, Río Blanco 13641.8465,175427,406+8.84%
41 Ensenada‡ Baja California Ensenada 119,346.0443,807466,814−4.93%
42 Nuevo Laredo Tamaulipas Nuevo Laredo 11,224.0425,058384,033+10.68%
43 Zacatecas – Guadalupe Zacatecas Zacatecas, Guadalupe 51,820.2405,285335,947+20.64%
44 Colima – Villa de Álvarez Colima Colima, Villa de Álvarez 52,287.6380,575334,240+13.86%
45 Monclova – Frontera Coahuila Monclova, Frontera 411,495.1374,247339,462+10.25%
46 Minatitlán Veracruz Minatitlán 62,930.3359,228356,137+0.87%
47 Tehuacán Puebla Tehuacán 2647.0357,621296,899+20.45%
48 Coatzacoalcos Veracruz Coatzacoalcos 3496.0355,738347,257+2.44%
49 Tapachula Chiapas Tapachula 1980.1353,706320,451+10.38%
50 Ciudad Victoria Tamaulipas Ciudad Victoria 11,463.6349,688321,953+8.61%
51 Chilpancingo Guerrero Chilpancingo 23,249.9336,480287,875+16.88%
52 Córdoba Veracruz Córdoba, Fortín de las Flores 4460.4335,950316,032+6.30%
53 Campeche Campeche Campeche 13,244.0294,077259,005+13.54%
54 La Paz Baja California Sur La Paz 115,838.0292,241251,871+16.03%
55 Zamora Michoacán Zamora, Jacona 2453.7273,641250,113+9.41%
56 Tulancingo Hidalgo Tulancingo, Cuautepec 3673.1268,351239,579+12.01%
57 Nogales Sonora Nogales 11,756.6264,782220,292+20.20%
58 La Piedad – Pénjamo Guanajuato, Michoacán La Piedad, Pénjamo 21,845.8261,450249,512+4.78%
59 Tula Hidalgo Tula 51,845.8256,795205,812+24.77%
60 Chetumal‡‡ Quintana Roo Chetumal 19,958.2233,648244,553−4.46%
61 San Francisco del Rincón Guanajuato San Francisco del Rincón, Purísima 2716.1214,713182,365+17.74%
62 Piedras Negras Coahuila Piedras Negras 21,382.4209,456180,734+15.89%
63 Guaymas Sonora Guaymas, Empalme 28,544.0208,294203,430+2.39%
64 Delicias Chihuahua Ciudad Delicias 2962.3195,359181,768+7.48%
65 Guanajuato Guanajuato Guanajuato 11,014.1194,500171,706+13.28%
66 Ocotlán Jalisco Ocotlán 31,240.3184,603164,256+12.39%
67 Tianguistenco Mexico Santiago Tianguistenco 6304.0183,281157,944+16.04%
68 Tehuantepec Oaxaca Salina Cruz, Tehuantepec 51,712.1179,870182,870−1.64%
69 Rioverde San Luis Potosí Rioverde, Ciudad Fernández 23,582.4146,049135,452+7.82%
70 Tecomán Colima Tecomán, Armería 21,347.7143,931141,421+1.77%
71 Teziutlán Puebla Teziutlán, Chignautla 2240.9138,806122,500+13.31%
72 Hidalgo del Parral Chihuahua Hidalgo del Parral, San Francisco del Oro 22,403.5121,666111,814+8.81%
73 Acayucan Veracruz Acayucan, Oluta 3830.0114,416112,996+1.26%
74 Moroleón – Uriangato Guanajuato Moroleón, Uriangato 2276.1108,755108,669+0.08%

A new municipality, San Quintín, was created out of Ensenada's territory in February 2020. [8]

Another new municipality, Bacalar, was created out of Othon P. Blanco's territory in February 2011. [9]

Transnational conurbations

The Mexico-U.S. border separates densely populated Tijuana, Mexico (right), from San Diego, United States (left). Border USA Mexico.jpg
The Mexico–U.S. border separates densely populated Tijuana, Mexico (right), from San Diego, United States (left).
A 3D rendered image of the Nuevo Laredo - Laredo Metropolitan Area, a binational urban agglomeration divided by the Rio Grande. Laredo-Nuevo Laredo Metropolitan Area.JPG
A 3D rendered image of the Nuevo Laredo - Laredo Metropolitan Area, a binational urban agglomeration divided by the Rio Grande.

The United States shares a 2,000 mi (3,000 km) border with Mexico. It is the most frequently crossed international border in the world, with about 250 million legal crossings every year. [10]

The distribution of the population in Mexico, especially, in urban areas, has been changed significantly by the economic interaction between settlements in its north and the United States. The increasing population concentration in the north of Mexico is strongly associated with the development of the maquila industries there and the eventual economic effects of North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). [12]

Metropolitan areas at the border with the United States form transnational conurbations with deep economic and demographic interaction. For example, the San Diego – Tijuana metropolitan area consists of San Diego County in the US and the municipalities of Tijuana, Playas de Rosarito, and Tecate in Mexico. The total population of the region has been estimated to be just over 5 million in 2009, making it by far the largest binational metropolitan area shared between the US and Mexico. [13] The National Population Council (CONAPO) recognizes the existence of such metropolitan areas and defines them as the municipalities with a city of at least 200,000 inhabitants and sharing processes of conurbation with cities of the US: [3]

Rank Metropolitan Area Mexican State American State Population
1 Tijuana - San Diego Baja California California 5,009,170 [13]
2 El Paso - Juarez Chihuahua Texas 2,345,182 [13]
3 Reynosa - McAllen Tamaulipas Texas 1,500,000 [13]
4 Matamoros - Brownsville Tamaulipas Texas 1,136,995 [13]
5 Mexicali - Calexico Baja California California 956,223 [13]
6 Nuevo Laredo - Laredo Tamaulipas Texas 747,494 [13]
7 Nogales - Nogales Sonora Arizona 234,809 [nb 1]
8 Piedras Negras - Eagle Pass Coahuila Texas 230,205 [nb 2]
9 San Luis Río Colorado - San Luis Sonora Arizona 188,152 [nb 3]
10 Ciudad Acuña - Del Río Coahuila Texas 183,750 [nb 4]

Mexico City megalopolis

Mexico City megalopolis location Megapolis Mexico Nombres.svg
Mexico City megalopolis location

A megalopolis is defined as a long chain of continuous metropolitan areas or territories that are relatively integrated amongst each other, a clear example being the Northeast Megalopolis in the United States. In 1996, the Programa General de Desarollo Urbano del Distrito Federal first proposed this concept to refer to the Mexico City megalopolis, or "megalopolis of central Mexico", which was later expanded by PROAIRE, a metropolitan commission on the environment. [14]

Known in the Spanish language as the corona regional del centro de México (regional ring), the megalopolis of Central Mexico was defined as the consolidation of the metropolitan areas of the Valley of Mexico, Puebla, Cuernavaca, Toluca, Pachuca, Tlaxcala, Tulancingo, Tula, Cuautla and Tianguistenco.

The Mexico City megalopolis spreads over 19,500 square kilometres (7,500 sq miles) and consists of 185 subdivisions in 6 federative entities. Furthermore, The Mexico City megalopolis spreads over 169 municipalities, of which 81 are in the State of Mexico. A further 39 are in Tlaxcala, 19 are in Puebla, 16 are in Hidalgo, 14 are in Morelos, and last but not least 16 boroughs of Mexico City. [14]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Sum of legal residents of Nogales, Sonora (213,976) and Nogales, Arizona (20,833).
  2. ↑ Sum of legal residents of Eagle Pass Metropolitan Area's population (48,401) and Piedras Negras, Coahuila (154,360).
  3. ↑ Sum of legal residents of San Luis Río Colorado, Sonora (164,342) and San Luis, Arizona (23,810).
  4. ↑ Sum of legal residents of Ciudad Acuña, Coahuila (135,605) and Del Rio, Texas (46,682).

References

  1. 1 2 Jaime Sobrino (15 May 1993). Gobierno y administración metropolitana y regional (in Spanish). INAP. ISBN   978-968-6403-20-6 . Retrieved 2020-12-30.
  2. ↑ Luis Unikel. "El desarrollo urbano de México: diagnóstico e implicaciones futuras" (in Spanish). El Colegio de México. Retrieved 2020-12-30.
  3. 1 2 "Delimitation of the Metropolitan Areas in Mexico" (PDF) (in Spanish). CONAPO. Retrieved 2020-12-30.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "Delimitation of Mexico's Metropolitan Areas 2015" (in Spanish). CONAPO. Retrieved 2020-12-29.
  5. ↑ Alejandra Trejo Nieto; Jose L. Nino-Amezquita (2019). Metropolitan Economic Development: The Political Economy of Urbanisation in Mexico. Taylor & Francis. p. 160. ISBN   9780429850585.
  6. ↑ "Censo de Población y Vivienda 2020 - SCITEL" (in Spanish). Retrieved 2021-01-26.
  7. ↑ "Censo de Población y Vivienda 2010 - Consulta" (in Spanish). INEGI. Retrieved 2020-12-11.
  8. ↑ "San Quintín will be the sixth municipality in Baja California" (in Spanish). El Financiero. 13 February 2020. Retrieved 2020-12-30.
  9. ↑ Silvia Hernández (2011-02-02). "Bacalar, el décimo municipio de Q. Roo" (in Spanish). El Universal (México). Retrieved 2011-02-05.
  10. 1 2 David M. Bridgeland, Ron Zahavi. Business Modeling: A Practical Guide to Realizing Business Value. Morgan Kaufmann, 2008. p. 134. ISBN   0-12-374151-3.
  11. ↑ "Borders and Law Enforcement". U.S. Embassy Mexico. Archived from the original on 3 September 2009. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
  12. ↑ Michael Pacione. Urban geography: a global perspective. Routledge, 2005. p. 105. ISBN   0415343054.
  13. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Metropolitan areas in the Americas". World Gazetteer. Archived from the original on 2007-10-01. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
  14. 1 2 Área metropolitana del Valle de México PROAIRE
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