Land Uses and Land Use Models

Question 1

Define CBD

Answer 1

The Central Business District. This the area in the middle of urban areas where there tends to be a concentration of retail and commercial land uses.

Question 2

Define transition zone

Answer 2

The area between the CBD and the largely residential suburbs.

Question 3

Define suburbs

Answer 3

The ares near the edge of the urban area that has a concentration of residential land use.

Question 4

Define rural-urban fringe

Answer 4

This is the boundary between the urban area and the rural area (countryside)

Question 5

Define greenfield site and brownfield site

Answer 5

• Green: Land that has never been built on before, greenfield sites will often be used for agriculture.
• Brown: This is land that has been built on previously but has been left abandoned and often become derelict

Question 6

Define greenbelt

Answer 6

Greenbelts are protected areas of land around large urban areas that is protected from development

Question 7

Main land uses

Answer 7

• Commercial
• Residential
• Agricultural
• Recreational
• Retail
• Industrial
• Educational

Question 8

Advantages and disadvantages of greenfield sites

Answer 8

• Advantages:
  + The land has never been used before so is not polluted
  + Greenfield sites are often near the rural-urban fringe where transport links are good
  + There is often less congestion near the rural-urban fringe
  + You can normally choose the size of your site and ensure that there is room to expand.
• Disadvantages:
  + Many greenfield sites are now protected by the government
  + The sites might be less accessible by public transport
  + There maybe public protests when trying to build on greenfield sites.

Question 9

Advantages and disadvantages of brownfield site

Answer 9

• Advantages:
  + The land is often cheap to buy because it has been used before
  + Many brownfield sites are located near the CBD.
  + Government policy is to build more on brownfield sites
• Disadvantages:
  + The land is often polluted so it is expensive to clean-up
  + Brownfield sites don’t always have room to expand
  + Brownfield sites are not always the shape that you want them to be.

Question 10

Advantages and disadvantages of placing retail shops in CBD

Answer 10

• Advantages:
  + Most public transport links (trains, subways and buses) tend to head towards CBDs
  + There are often other associated services that you can visit at the same time e.g. banks
• Disadvantages:
  + There is often a shortage of space, so shops and shopping centres are unable to expand => land is expensive
  + Some CBDs have a lot of derelict buildings and high crime rates which scares potential customers visiting the area.

Question 11

Advantages and disadvantages of placing retail shops in RUF

Answer 11

• Advantages:
  + There is plenty of land in the rural-urban fringe so shopping centres are able to expand => land is cheaper
  + Large development
• Disadvantages:
  + It can cause environmental damage as greenfield sites are destroyed in the rural-urban fringe.
  + Encourages greater use of the car, furthering congestion and pollution