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Raleigh and Durham were split in 2003 I think. I think the MSA criteria was changed to the anchor population county needing to be the top draw for commuting. Durham having most of RTP and Wake having most of the housing meant that the criteria was reversed. So it didn’t matter if 12% of Durham worked in Wake since 15% of Wake worked in Durham. So despite Wake-Durham being the two counties tied more with commuting than any other two counties in the state, because the majority goes the wrong way it doesn’t count.
Over the decades, Wake County has exploded in population and workforce. In 1970, Durham County had 132,681 people while Wake County had 228,453. By 2018, Durham grew to 316,739 while Wake grew to 1,092,305. For every person added to Durham Co. since 1970, Wake added about 4.7. (By MSA this past decade, Raleigh-Cary added more than 3 new residents for every 1 added to Durham-Chapel Hill) So, over the decades, and even if Wake added more commuters to the Durham side of RTP (Research Triangle Park), the percentage of commuters from Wake to Durham decreases. Oddly, with each passing year, the communities near the borders of the two MSAs become more and more intermingled and dependent on each other's MSA's resources while the metrics by which MSAs are counted likely drift further and further apart.
At the end of the day, it's simply an oddity situation.
I’d venture to say that almost nobody in Needles commutes to San B.
I'd venture to say that almost nobody in Needles even works.
Spoiler
It has a well-known reputation as a welfare town.
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Originally Posted by Bellside High
I think that the Denver MSA should include Boulder CO, ( it used to) which is only 28 miles from downtown Denver. Im not sure of the commuter percentages, but it is a continuous development, and even has cities in the Boulder and Denver MSAs that share land borders. But being from Denver, i suppose it does "feel" a little different up there.
It does, but would you consider Longmont to be part of the Denver MSA?
Wilmington, NC got the shaft in 2013 when neighboring Brunswick, County, NC which sits across the river from downtown Wilmington went to Myrtle Beach, SC. This dropped the Wilmington MSA population from 361,000 in 2010 to 255,000 which seems really small for a city like Wilmington, NC. I read that even the leaders of Brunswick County and Wilmington disputed the change with the Census, but were unsuccessful.
Boston goes way too far northeast And not far enough southwest but it’s way too big in general
The Main issue is since Middlesex County is a “core county” people commuting to Andover, Tewksbury, Wilmington, Lowell from NH count as Boston commuters
I'd venture to say that almost nobody in Needles even works.
Spoiler
It has a well-known reputation as a welfare town.
It does, but would you consider Longmont to be part of the Denver MSA?
It is far enough away from Denver's sphere of influence that I wouldn't consider it in the MSA, and I don't personally know anyone who makes that commute regularly.
Wilmington, NC got the shaft in 2013 when neighboring Brunswick, County, NC which sits across the river from downtown Wilmington went to Myrtle Beach, SC. This dropped the Wilmington MSA population from 361,000 in 2010 to 255,000 which seems really small for a city like Wilmington, NC. I read that even the leaders of Brunswick County and Wilmington disputed the change with the Census, but were unsuccessful.
Yeah that move was completely baffling to me. I recalled seeing the commuting statistics a few years back and it looked like most commuters from Brunswick clearly headed to New Hanover for employment. But yeah, local leaders presented several lines of evidence to demonstrate that Brunswick is part of the same market as New Hanover, but to no avail.
The Main issue is since Middlesex County is a “core county” people commuting to Andover, Tewksbury, Wilmington, Lowell from NH count as Boston commuters
Andover is in Essex, not Middlesex. I totally thought Lowell was too, because the rest of the Merrimack Valley is, but I guess not. Weird.
I have always found it strange that Lawrence, Kansas is a separate MSA and not combined with either Topeka or Kansas City. Lawrence has experienced a lot of growth on the west side to where it is 10 to 15 miles from the east side of Topeka. Lawrence hasn’t grown as much on the east side, but the KC Metro has grown a lot on the west side. I think Lawrence is now part of the KC CSA.
Also, Topeka’s metro is 5 counties, four of which are relatively rural.
It is far enough away from Denver's sphere of influence that I wouldn't consider it in the MSA, and I don't personally know anyone who makes that commute regularly.
Exactly. And I don't know anybody commuting from Boulder or Longmont into Denver either. And at worst, Boulder County inbound commuters are coming from Weld, Broomfield, Jefferson, or Adams; the latter three of which are solidly Denver MSA.
Wilmington, NC got the shaft in 2013 when neighboring Brunswick, County, NC which sits across the river from downtown Wilmington went to Myrtle Beach, SC. This dropped the Wilmington MSA population from 361,000 in 2010 to 255,000 which seems really small for a city like Wilmington, NC. I read that even the leaders of Brunswick County and Wilmington disputed the change with the Census, but were unsuccessful.
This happens to Milwaukee, as well. Chicago has eaten up part of Milwaukee's MSA. Some day, it will all be one big CSA. Not yet, though.
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