This major study, first published in 1989, examines Western Europe's urban problems in unprecedented breadth and depth. It is a synthesis of research which had three main aims: to establish an informed view of the state of urban Europe in the most systematic and consistent way possible; to investigate document and analyse the various causes of urban problems; and to analyse general trends and similarities, as well as discovering what was local and particular. This book should prove invaluable to students, researchers and professionals concerned with urban affairs, whether they be geographers, planners, economists or policy-makers.

Paul C. Cheshire, Dennis G. Hay

Acknowledgements; List of Tables; Abbreviations; 1. Introduction 2. Background and the Use of Functional Urban Regions 3. Problems of Urban Decline and Growth: A Review 4. Urban Areas in the EC: Problems of Decline and Growth 1971-84 5. The Analysis of Case Studies 6. Growth and Decline: The Range of European Urban Experience 7. Urban Problems and Patterns of Change 8. A Review of Urban Policy 9. Policy Implications; References; Data Appendix; Index