PLANNING

WHO MADE THE CENTRAL PLACE THEORY

is a village/town/city that is engaged in settlement-forming trade

surrounding area or market area being served by central place

NOTES: 

• Not all places are the same. There emerges a hierarchy of places, some big or small

• As the place/settlement grows in population, so does its market 

• A bigger place will have more function/ the higher in the hierarchy of place/settlements 

• The larger the settlement, the higher the order of its services 

• Hierarchy is based on population, function and services 

• How functions and services attract customers from areas beyond the urban limits

• The central position and ability to attract customers to a village, town or city 

The distance people are willing to travel to buy goods or services

NOTES:

• Producers are willing to travel up to the point ‘a’, to purchase from the other producers 

• With improved transport and communication, consumers willing to travel further to ‘b’ 

• Market areas overlap 

• Development of hexagonal market areas: tangential spheres are more efficient 

• Creation of “higher order” and “lower order” services 

• -Systematic pattern/ spaced hexagonally shaped market areas 

• -Service activities range from low order services found in every center center to higher order 

• -Lowest ranked centers were likely to be located 7 kilometers apart 

• -Each high ranked central place offers all goods and services of next lower ranked place plus at least one or two more

• -Low order goods ( low threshold) are inexpensive and frequently purchased goods 

• -Higher good (high threshold) are costly and infrequently purchased goods