Mega region Atlanta, Birmingham, Charlotte, Augusta, Savannah (Columbus, North Atlanta: neighborhoods, rail)

[joeyrun]

Night-time satellite photos clearly show how clusters of cities are growing toward each other to form what academics are calling "mega-regions."

One obvious mega-region, which even travelers can recognize, is Washington, Baltimore and South Florida merging like one enormous sprawling metropolis.

Another such mega-region in the works involves, among other cities, Birmingham, Ala., Atlanta, Ga., and Charlotte, N.C., and is now spreading to include Athens, Augusta and Savannah.
Can cities grow together?

Anybody like this or don't like the idea. The mayor of Athens is not really for it including their city. She wants Athens to keep its own identity.

[ATLCOL1]

I know the Columbus region has definitely been talking about this for some time. Columbus' proximity to Atlanta and Birmingham helps create a great advantage for growth. I don't see how Augusta and Savannah can capitalize on it since they are further away.

[lilmusket]

Hmmm. I just do not see this happening. The only true megaregion in the US would be what's termed "megalopolis" which is the string of metro areas from Washington, Dc to Boston. there's a lot of space in between Atlanta, Augusta and Savannah that would have to be filled to create a mega region.. and considering that Atlanta is mostly growing to the north... Chattanooga is the most likely city to join an Atlanta centered mega region.

[bgnzsavnh]

The "Port Of Atlanta" is the only connection Savannah has with Metlanta.
Savannah is more associated with Jacksonville and Florida and the I-95 corridor.
Orlando and Charlotte and Atlanta are each 4 hours away

[lilmusket]

the cities in the South are just too far apart to create a megaregion.. I think the closest we come to it in the south is the Piedmont Region of North Carolina. You have The Raleigh/Durham area and then the Triad region that has pretty much all grown together.

[lilmusket]

Oh and then the South Florida region... but that's not really in the South.

[atlantagreg30127]

I guess it depends on what you consider "connected".

For example, if Atlanta, Charlotte, Chattanooga, and Birmingham were all connected via a high speed rail system that ran several times per day to each city, then technically, you might be able to say the entire network is "connected as a mega-city".

So far though, we're decades away (at least) for such a system in place, so no, while from space the city lights may make it LOOK like they're running close to each other, most U.S. cities are still too far apart to be considered merged or connected into a mega-regional area.

[southgeorgia]

Originally Posted by atlantagreg30127

while from space the city lights may make it LOOK like they're running close to each other.

yep, that's a pretty terrible way to judge how cities are growing together.

flying around south georgia at night, a lot of these scattered small towns can look like neighborhoods in one big city.

tallahassee, valdosta, thomasville, quitman, etc. . .just all run together at night around 6k' or so.

[matt8325]

Originally Posted by lilmusket

Hmmm. I just do not see this happening. The only true megaregion in the US would be what's termed "megalopolis" which is the string of metro areas from Washington, Dc to Boston. there's a lot of space in between Atlanta, Augusta and Savannah that would have to be filled to create a mega region.. and considering that Atlanta is mostly growing to the north... Chattanooga is the most likely city to join an Atlanta centered mega region.

Atlanta is growing mostly to the north ? Is there any room left north of Atlanta to grow ? It seems like other parts of Atlanta are less developed and therefore has more room to grow.

[ATLCOL1]

Originally Posted by matt8325

Atlanta is growing mostly to the north ? Is there any room left north of Atlanta to grow ? It seems like other parts of Atlanta are less developed and therefore has more room to grow.

North Atlanta is just about built out. Forsyth County still has a lot of land. South Atlanta has a lot going on and will continue to see a lot of development due to cheaper/available land.