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They draw lines based on commuter patterns, so therefore Mecer County is not Part of The Philly area no matter how close it is.
Lets be more generous and give Philadelphia a larger scope of influence, Boston can afford it.
Philadelphia, PA-NJ-DE-MD: $401.6 billion
Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ: $28.5 billion
Lancaster, PA: $18.5 billion
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD Metro Area $335.1 billion
Reading, PA Metro Area $14.5 billion
Vineland-Millville-Bridgeton, NJ Metro Area $4.8 billion
Philadelphia totals: 7,874,301. FYI, new land area total = 9,140 square mile. Still smaller than Boston's economy yet slightly larger in population by 300K and comparable land area.
I think the splitting hairs of the CSA v. MSA population counts and GDP outputs really demonstrates the extremely even match between both cities and their urban areas, at least in terms of economic importance. We all have our biases, but the fact of the matter is the difference between these two areas is very negligible. What would make this even more complex is if the DC area were thrown the mix, although I'm inclined to think that, in terms of a CSA measure, DC would have to claim the #2 title for the Northeast.
I think the splitting hairs of the CSA v. MSA population counts and GDP outputs really demonstrates the extremely even match between both cities and their urban areas, at least in terms of economic importance. We all have our biases, but the fact of the matter is the difference between these two areas, in my eyes, is very negligible.
I would naturally agree with you, and it would be wise for Philadelphia to get commuter systems readied towards Allentown and Lancaster as it seems there's already enough interchange between those selected areas and Philadelphia itself.
Both of which seem to be growing "towards" Philadelphia. I would love to see both Allentown and Lancaster consumed by Philadelphia, it adds even more wealth, even more size, even more prominence, even more stature for a city with a limited scope of influence. 5,900 square miles is miniature compared to the sizes of Boston, Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston, New York, Dallas, Phoenix, Washington, and even the likes of middle sized cities such as Orlando, Nashville, and such.
What Philly really needs is a new, chart-topping rapper to call its own.
Quote:
Originally Posted by N69
I would naturally agree with you, and it would be wise for Philadelphia to get commuter systems readied towards Allentown and Lancaster as it seems there's already enough interchange between those selected areas and Philadelphia itself.
Both of which seem to be growing "towards" Philadelphia. I would love to see both Allentown and Lancaster consumed by Philadelphia, it adds even more wealth, even more size, even more prominence, even more stature for a city with a limited scope of influence. 5,900 square miles is miniature compared to the sizes of Boston, Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston, New York, Dallas, Phoenix, Washington, and even the likes of middle sized cities such as Orlando, Nashville, and such.
I would naturally agree with you, and it would be wise for Philadelphia to get commuter systems readied towards Allentown and Lancaster as it seems there's already enough interchange between those selected areas and Philadelphia itself.
Both of which seem to be growing "towards" Philadelphia. I would love to see both Allentown and Lancaster consumed by Philadelphia, it adds even more wealth, even more size, even more prominence, even more stature for a city with a limited scope of influence. 5,900 square miles is miniature compared to the sizes of Boston, Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston, New York, Dallas, Phoenix, Washington, and even the likes of middle sized cities such as Orlando, Nashville, and such.
I agree with you completely. For being the 5th largest city in the US, Philly definitely does not extend its economic pull nearly as far as it could. Reinforcing the links between the Allentown, Lancaster and Reading areas I believe will come to fruition in the future, and enhanced transportation infrastructure will play a fundamental role in that trend.
I agree with you completely. For being the 5th largest city in the US, Philly definitely does not extend its economic reach nearly as far as it could. Reinforcing the links between the Allentown, Lancaster and Reading areas I believe will come to fruition in the future, and enhanced transportation infrastructure will play a fundamental role in that trend.
I respect Philadelphia, the city has offered a lot to the country and outside of this forum is most certainly a beautifully underrated city. Although I wouldn't live there, mainly due to a career choice and family relations not being there I can tell you that next to Washington and Baltimore, Philadelphia will be seeing immense growth in the future.
I believe it to be Allentown, PA-NJ to be the fastest growing metro in PA, good sign for Philadelphia to push its influence into a larger scope. Reading being as it is already merged with Philadelphia by CSA is on track and Lancaster soon to follow.
Another thing Philadelphia can do is put incentives or tax breaks for films to get more attention but then again, most Philadelphians I've met love where Philadelphia is headed now rather than to change it into a faux Los Angeles.
I don't know what's going on with the southport expansion of the port of Philadelphia, as of last year it was going to be built right after the dredging is completed. The port of Philadelphia doesn't do enough business, relative to the freight rail resources in the region, I think the expansion could go a long way towards improving Philadelphia's economy.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Duderino
I agree with you completely. For being the 5th largest city in the US, Philly definitely does not extend its economic pull nearly as far as it could. Reinforcing the links between the Allentown, Lancaster and Reading areas I believe will come to fruition in the future, and enhanced transportation infrastructure will play a fundamental role in that trend.
I don't know what's going on with the southport expansion of the port of Philadelphia, as of last year it was going to be built right after the dredging is completed. The port of Philadelphia doesn't do enough business, relative to the freight rail resources in the region, I think the expansion could go a long way towards improving Philadelphia's economy.
Absolutely. I also heard of the port expansion as a result of the dredging project, but I'm unsure as to the outcome of that, particularly given current economic conditions.
As for rail, there's so much underutilized existing infrastructure here, it's kind of absurd. Many cities would die for the rail system that Southeastern PA has, and it was once world-renowned, but so much of it was abandoned with the popularization of automobile travel, trucking and air freight. Here's a cool map showing the extent of rail in PA at the turn of the 20th century:
In light of all of the discussion of utilizing rail infrastructure again, if even a fraction of the defunct lines can be resurrected, it would be an enormous asset.
Last edited by Duderino; 08-21-2011 at 03:09 PM..
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