PERI-URBANISATION AROUND WARSAW

Abstract

Warsaw with its suburban zone is one of the fastest developing areas in Poland. Over the 30 years of political transformation and excessive suburbanisation around both Warsaw and the surrounding cities was accompanied by an increase in the number of residents and decrease in green areas in favour of housing development. The suburban zone around Warsaw keeps expanding. Its dynamics of changes make its range difficult to define. Areas adjacent to Warsaw show stronger urbanisation than the peripheral suburban zone. Long-lasting spatial transformations around Warsaw contribute to the development of a new peri-urban zone, constituting a specific urban-rural continuum.