We evaluate whether the population movements from central-city areas to the agglomeration outskirts (a process referred to as periurbanization or urban sprawl) came to a halt. Many high-income countries indeed experienced a decline in internal migration and a renewed attractiveness of central city areas (a recent process also referred to as re-urbanization). We analyze internal migration across consistently defined rural areas and urban density zones of 79 agglomerations, covering the period 1966 to 2018. Results show that, although the intensity of migration indeed declined in general, the rate increased among the working age population. This can be related to the societal diffusion of tertiary education, which has always been associated with increased spatial mobility. The new dynamics of re-urbanization, observed in some agglomerations around 2000, appear to be a passing phase. The more marked process of periurbanization has extended recently beyond current agglomeration borders. This study is being carried out in collaboration with the Statistical Office of the Canton of Zurich. “Project duration: 2020-2022”.
Net migration across urban density zones within agglomerations and the rural territory, 2010-2018 (five-year rates):
