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Francesca Froy

Research

Subject

What is the role of urban morphology in agglomeration economies?

Primary and secondary supervisors

Dr Sam Griffiths and Professor Laura Vaughan

Sponsor

EPSRC Studentship

Abstract

This thesis is seeking to understand whether the size of cities is the only important factor in generating agglomeration economies, or whether the spatial organisation of cities may also play a role. In particular, the research explores how ‘sharing, matching and learning’ mechanisms (Duranton and Puga, 2003) work in cities and how these are shaped by urban street networks.

Manchester in the UK has been chosen as a case study city, with a particular focus on the textiles industry that still thrives in the city centre. The thesis draws on two methodologies in particular – space syntax, and ‘product space mapping’ developed by the Harvard Growth Lab.