Directionally Biased Metropolitan Growth: A Model and a Case Study

Many contemporary models of metropolitan growth rely upon radial symmetry assumptions that have remained largely untested. The trigonometric expansions discussed in this paper can be used to test for radial symmetry and to produce mathematical portraits of directionally biased metropolitan growth. These expansions were applied to investigating the growth patterns of the hinterland of Columbus, Ohio, between 1940 and 1980. Our analyses revealed clear evidence of directionally biased growth along major transportation arteries over most of the time horizon considered.