Pavel Klapka

Functional regions : Concept and types

The contribution is concerned with a concept of a region in spatial and regional science. A number of terms related to specific instances of a region can cause a misinterpretation ofthe concept both in scientific and applied sphere. The objective of the contribution is to provide a concise theoretical introduction into a concept of a region, particularly of a region based on functional horizontal spatial relations, and a typology of functional regions. The discussion of different types of regions and their semantic content is put forward as well. Based onthe relevant literature and own research six types of regions have been identified and their position in the spatial and regional science shortly explained.

An alternative definition and use for the constraint function for rule-based methods of functional regionalisation

Abstract The paper addresses the issue of the constraint function and its use in methods of regional taxonomy and assessment of regional systems. It proposes an alternative definition for the constraint function for rule-based methods of functional regionalisation, such as the delineation of local labour-market areas, including alternative conceptions of the self-containment of the regions, and the trade-off between size and self-containment. An alternative constraint function has been applied in the territory of the Czech Republic as shown in the papers illustrative example of its use from the original CURDS algorithm.

Conceptualising patterns of spatial flows: Five decades of advances in the definition and use of functional regions

Abstract Some fifty years in the development of ideas about the definition and use of functional regions are elaborated in this article, as an introduction to this Special Issue of the Moravian Geographical Reports. The conceptual basis for functional regions is discussed, initially in relation to region-organising interactions and their behavioural foundations. This paper presents an approach to functional regions which presumes that such regions objectively exist and that they are based on more or less tangible processes (however, a different view of regions is also briefly described). A typology of functional regions is presented and the development of methods for finding a definition of functional regions is discussed, as well as a typology for these methods. The final part of this article stresses the importance of functional regions in geographical research, and introduces some emerging new prospects in the study of functional regions.

Spatial influence of regional centres of Slovakia: analysis based on the distance-decay function

The uneven distribution of centres in settlement systems and the non-homogeneity of social-economic space are the stimuli for the existence of spatial interactions. The interactions, that manifest the changes in their intensity with an increasing distance from a centre, can be described by distance-decay functions. This paper presents the construction, analysis and typology of distance-decay functions for regional centres of Slovakia using the daily travel-to-work flow data. Apart from an estimation of individual distance decay functions for each centre, a universal distance-decay function is also constructed through more sophisticated statistical analyses, where not only distance is the input parameter, but also the population of a centre. The resulting distance-decay functions have a wide range of uses in spatial interaction modelling (commuting, transportation, etc.). They also define the range of spatial influence of regional centres and therefore they can be used, for example, in proposals and revisions for the administrative division of a territory.

The efficiency of areal units in spatial analysis: Assessing the performance of functional and administrative regions

Abstract An attempt to provide a procedure for the assessment of the efficiency of various regional systems for the purposes of spatial analysis is presented in this paper. Functional regions as well as approximated functional regions and the existing administrative regions in the Czech Republic are evaluated, as examples of regional systems to be compared and assessed. Functional regions and approximated functional regions are defined according to the adjusted third variant of the CURDS regionalisation algorithm, using the latest knowledge on the operation of the constraint function. The comparisons of individual regional systems are based on LISA maps and particularly on the assessment of regional variability, including the measures of internal homogeneity and external variability in the regional systems.

The Footfall of Shopping Centres in Olomouc (Czech Republic): an Application of the Gravity Model

Abstract The issue of the footfall of large retail facilities in the city of Olomouc is treated in this article from the perspective of spatial interaction modelling. A production-constrained gravity model is applied to reveal spatial patterns of shopping travel intensities in the city. Three problems are addressed: the existing pattern and intensities of flows to the shopping centres; the prediction of possible future changes in these patterns and intensities; and inferences about hypothetical sizes of shopping centres according to some defined conditions. Shrnutí Článek se zabývá problematikou návštěvnosti velkých maloobchodních zařízení ve městě Olomouci z pohledu modelování prostorových interakcí. K odhalení prostorových vzorů a intenzit cest za nákupy ve struktuře města slouží produkčně omezený gravitační model. Zabýváme se třemi problémy: stávajícím vzorem a intensitami toků do nákupních center, predikcí možných budoucích změn těchto toků a jejich intensit a odvozením hypotetické velikosti nákupních center podle definovaných podmínek.

Functionality versus gerrymandering and nationalism in administrative geography: lessons from Slovakia

ABSTRACT Functionality versus gerrymandering and nationalism in administrative geography: lessons from Slovakia. Regional Studies. A correct definition of administrative regions is one of the crucial factors in the efficient performance of public administration. The paper stresses the advantages of a spatial interaction approach. It builds on four conceptual cornerstones: functional relationships in space, functional regions, the distance–decay function and administrative geography principles. It also includes a presentation of the selected risks that can degrade the correctness of an administrative arrangement. The proposed approach provides administrative regions that follow the principles of spatial efficiency and spatial equity, and the territory of Slovakia is used as an example.

The spatial equity principle in the administrative division of the Central European countries

The paper generally builds on the concept of justice in social science. It attempts to interpret this concept in a geographical and particularly in a spatial context. The paper uses the concept of accessibility to define the principle of spatial equity. The main objective of the paper is to propose an approach with which to assess the level of spatial equity in the administrative division of a territory. In order to fulfil this objective the paper theoretically discusses the concept of spatial equity and relates it to other relevant concepts, such as spatial efficiency. The paper proposes some measures of spatial equity and uses the territory of four Central European countries (Austria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia) as example of the application of the proposed measures and the corroboration of the proposed approach. The analysis is based on the administrative division of four countries and is carried out at different hierarchical levels as defined by the Nomenclature of Units for Territorial Statistics (NUTS).

Časoprostorové modely nákupního chování české populace

Ceský maloobchod prochazi obdobim největsich změn v cele sve historii. Na kapacitni i kvalitativni nedostatecnost odvětvi z konce 80. let minuleho stoleti navazala v prvni polovině let devadesatých etapa atomizace, podpořena malou privatizaci, kdy se pocet maloobchodnich jednotek za deset let zvýsil dvojnasobně na teměř 100 tisic. Od 2. poloviny 90. let zacaly ve větsi miře pronikat na tuzemský trh zahranicni řetězce a ceský maloobchod se velmi rychle internacionalizoval. Vstup zahranicniho kapitalu byl dominantni, domaci subjekty nebyly realně konkurenceschopne. Pokracovala transformace maloobchodu, jehož sitova struktura se opirala o stale větsi pocet velkoplosných maloobchodnich jednotek (super a hypermarkety, diskonty), objevila se prvni nakupni centra. Předložena publikace nabizi ctenařům hlavni výsledky projektu „Casoprostorova organizace dennich urbannich systemů: analýza a hodnoceni vybraných procesů“. Denni rytmus obyvatel zde neni primarně vazan na pohyb za praci, ale je modifikovan dojižďkou za službami a specificky za maloobchodem, resp. je dotvařen novými formami nakupniho chovani. V prvni casti textu je představen teoretický zaklad nakupniho chovani jako socialně-prostoroveho fenomenu, dale navazuje transformace ceskeho maloobchodu a fenomen nakupnich center. Druha cast prace je založena na výsledcich rozsahlých setřeni v modelových aglomeracich Brna a Olomouce.

Prostorová neurčitost funkčních regionů: porovnání pracovní dojížďky v letech 1991-2011

Funkcni regiony jsou regiony vymezene na zakladě horizontalnich vazeb, toků nebo interakci, přicemž jsou standardně využivany sofistikovane iteracni algoritmy. Jde o jednotky, ktere jsou svoji povahou vhodne a využivane pro řadu ucelů, ať už jde o různe analýzy, aplikaci některých politik atd. Intenzita a směr vazeb se vsak v zavislosti na různých faktorech v case měni a může tak dochazet k vzniku nebo zaniku regionů ci ke změnam průběhu jejich hranic, ktere i v jednom casovem horizontu mohou být v urcitých oblastech nejednoznacne (prostorova neurcitost dilcich uzemnich jednotek). Přispěvek se zaměřuje na vymezeni funkcnich regionů na zakladě dat o dojižďce ve třech casových horizontech, respektive komparaci výsledků a hodnoceni změn, ke kterým v letech 1991-2011 doslo. Přes poměrně zřetelný trend poklesu poctu funkcnich regionů v case (pozorovaný i v dalsich vyspělých zapadnich zemich, ktere maji k dispozici delsi casovou řadu regionalnich systemů vymezených konzistentni metodikou), nelze hodnotit změny jako zasadni ci převratne, vzhledem k rozsahu a intenzitě celospolecenských změn odehravajicich se ve sledovanem obdobi na uzemi CR.