Miejskie obszary funkcjonalne a kształtowanie spójności terytorialnej
Functional urban areas vs. territorial cohesion formation

Summary/Abstract: The main task of the current regional policy is to shape territorial cohesion, and functioning of functional urban areas (FUA) is one of its concepts. The territorial cohesion is understood in all sorts of ways. In this paper it is treated as: endogenous and polycentral development, levelling disproportion in the level of the social-economic development, creating network connections and ensuring the availability of services (mainly knowledge and infrastructure). The main aim of research is to determine the connection between the essence and the practice of FUA and forming the territorial cohesion. The research was conducted in the regional layout, based on FUA of the South-West Poland. As sources of information were used programming documents for studied functional areas, provinces, as well as statistical information. The paper presents the effects of research which was performed with the use of qualitative and quantitative methods. Research shows that taken actions in FUA frames do not have an influence for levelling disproportion horizontally of social-economic development and the access to services. The territorial cohesion can be shaped through stimulating diffusion processes from FUA and/or by making the networks of their connections. FUA are connected with polarizing-diffusion model of the regional development. Thus to improve their influence on territorial cohesion, its needed to shape directing actions to make conditions for spreading the development impulse.

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