Adelaide,
South Australia
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| Relation to Models | |
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Relation to Models. Once again, the uniqueness of Australian cities makes them difficult to place under a model. Even other British colonial cities are different, since many Australian cities are confounded by the fact that they were originally penal colonies. While Adelaide doesn't have the convict history some other cities do, it is still a fairly young city, with no history before the British. To the extent that Adelaide's main purpose was to serve as a mercantile, commercial, and administrative center for the empire, it does somewhat resemble colonial cities in North/South America, South Africa, and New Zealand. |
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This model was developed for North American cities, but it does reflect the patterns seen in Adelaide's residential settlement and segregation (click on the image to enlarge it). Starting at the bottom: Physical Space: Adelaide indeed has a CBD with many roads leading in from the suburbs as well as a grid pattern surrounding them. Adelaide was rather influenced by garden city principles, and it is still a relatively small city, so the greenspace within the city is probably greater than reflected in this model. Economic Status: Neighborhoods of different social or economic status are manifested in sectors (rather than concentric rings) in Adelaide as well as many other Australian cities. Family Status: Because of the high levels of ownership in Adelaide, this is especially true: young couples and families definitely tend to live towards the outer rings in this model, and young singles and elderly tend to live in the inner rings. Ethnic Status: Thanks to the influx of overseas immigrants during the Long Boom, Adelaide does indeed have some ethnic neighborhoods, though on a much smaller scale than, for example, the Greek neighborhoods in Melbourne. |
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Many Australian cities did start as compact, walk-able cities. However, due to Adelaide's relatively late foundation and the advent of rail and tram transport in the 1870's, Adelaide was quick to fit into the top model (click to enlarge), especially since it was linked to its port by a railway and this was a particularly high-traffic route. Still, Port Road is a very heavily traveled stretch of pavement. However, Australians have embraced the automobile as much or more than Americans. In Adelaide, nearly 75% of the workers drive a car to their employment every day. Adelaide does have a fairly extensive suburban rail system as well as a tightly-run bus line, including a free loop bus within the CBD, and an old tram that goes to a beach suburb. But thanks to the preponderance of the automobile (especially Holdens, the Australian Ford), Adelaide is beginning to take on the amoebic, sprawling form seen in the lower model, and there are certainly patches of industry sprouting up outside the CBD. However, the sprawl is limited by the mountains on one side and the sea on the other, so the city is growing mostly in north and south directions. Again, though, we must keep the difference in scale in mind: often the automobile city connotes a gigantic, polynucleated megametropolis like Los Angeles; however, greater LA has about as many people as all of Australia. |
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The tram at Glenelg, a beach town near Adelaide