URBAN SYSTEM FRACTAL CHARACTERISTIC OF THE YANGTZE DELTA INTERLOCKING METROPOLITAN AREAS

The Yangtze Delta Interlocking Metropolitan Areas is one of the largest city regions in the world,and the structure of its urban system has had a great change in recent years.Fractal study is one of the most important content in modern theoretic geography,and the urban system fractal study is a new way for the study of the city geography especially,fractal dimension is an effective parameter describing the structure of the urban system.This paper commenced with the application of the urban system fractal theory and tried to find the rule of the urban system of the Yangtze Delta Interlocking Metropolitan Areas.Based on the fractal theory,the paper analyzed the scale structure and spatial structure of urban system,and found out that the urban system has the fractal properties,so the fractal theory could fit to calculate and analyze the scale structure and spatial structure of urban system of the Yangtze Delta Interlocking Metropolitan Areas.According to the results of calculation and analysis,the paper drew the conclusions below:(1) Scale structure of urban system of the Yangtze Delta Interlocking Metropolitan Areas presents rank-scale properties,the monopolies of primacy city are evidence,the quantities of middle scale city are less than bigger and smaller one,the development between different cities become more competitive than ever.(2) Spatial structure of urban system of the Yangtze Delta Interlocking Metropolitan Areas has fractal characteristic,the state of urban distribution is in equilibrium,the degree of interspaces conjunction between the cities is adequate compactness,and the intensity of the interactions of the cities is strong.According to the conclusions mentioned above,the paper presents that the effective measures must be taken to improve the situation of the urban system structure of the Yangtze Delta Interlocking Metropolitan Areas.