The Evolution Process,Development Level And Driving Mechanism Of Urban Integration In Wuhan Metropolitan Area

Urban integration is a new form of regional integration produced in the process of China’s economic development,which is conducive to enhancing regional competitiveness and economic development level,and promoting the urban integration development of metropolitan area is an essential way to promote coordinated regional development and high-quality regional development.The practice of urban integration in China needs corresponding theoretical support.Currently,research on urban integration at the scale of metropolitan areas is still insufficient,and there is a slight shortage of research on the driving mechanism of urban integration.Based on the practical background of the country’s development of modern metropolitan areas,on the one hand,the research can improve the theoretical research on urban integration,on the other hand,it can provide experience for the construction of urban integration in the whole country.Therefore,this paper takes Wuhan Metropolitan Area as a case area,takes the urban integration as the research theme,selects 2010-2020 as the research period,adopts literature analysis,spatial analysis,mathematical statistics and other research methods,follows the idea of "evolution process-development level-driving mechanism-optimization suggestions",systematically sorts out the evolution process,reveals the spatio-temporal evolution characteristics,and analyzes the driving mechanism of urban integration,in order to provide optimization suggestions for the development of Wuhan Metropolitan Area.The main conclusions of this study are as follows:First,the study of the evolution process of Wuhan Metropolitan Area.Uses qualitative research to sort out and summarize the process of urban integration,and summarizes the development characteristics and development dilemma through quantitative analysis.In terms of development stage,according to the main development events in different periods,divides the development stage of Wuhan Metropolitan Area into four stages: initial exploration period,rapid development period,stable development period and new development period.In terms of development characteristics,the characteristics of urban integration mainly include rapid economic development,continuous transformation and upgrading of industrial structure,acceleration of urbanization process,optimization of spatial structure,and the emergence of circle network.Second,research on the development level of Wuhan Metropolitan Area.This paper constructs an evaluation index system covering six dimensions: spatial connection,industrial collaboration,market construction,transportation construction,public service and ecological environment,and uses the objective empowerment method for weighted calculation.In terms of time evolution,during the study period,the level of urban integration in Wuhan Metropolitan Area increased steadily,the growth rate first accelerated and then slowed down gradually,the urban integration level in eight groups areas increased in fluctuation,and the temporal changes of the different dimensions are discrepant.In terms of spatial evolution,the spatial distribution of Wuhan Metropolitan Area is generally stable and partially different,the spatial distribution has significant directionality,with high-value areas concentrated in the eastern and low-value areas concentrated in the western part of the metropolitan area,and the spatial evolution characteristics of the muti-dimensions are different.Third,research on the driving mechanism of Wuhan Metropolitan Area.This paper introduces ridge regression analysis,the six factors of economic development level,government financial capacity,market consumption status,urbanization level,advanced industrial structure,and scientific and technological innovation ability passed the significance test.In terms of influencing factors,the level of urbanization,government financial capacity and economic development level are important driving factors of Wuhan Metropolitan Area,while scientific and technological innovation ability,advanced industrial structure and market consumption status are the general driving factors.In terms of regional differences,the driving mechanisms of the eight groups of metropolitan areas are different,and most areas are mainly affected by urbanization and market consumption drive.Based on the above research conclusions,this paper puts forward optimization suggestions for the urban integration of Wuhan Metropolitan Area.In the future,the construction of Wuhan Metropolitan Area needs to focus on promoting new urbanization,transportation infrastructure construction,integrating metropolitan space,improving the mechanism support,industrial collaborative innovation,and strengthening special financial support.