China has more big cities than any other country in the world. However, in recent years, nothing is ever big enough in China. So it shouldn't come as too much of a surprise that China intends to create the world's biggest mega city. According to The Telegraph, the plan is to combine 9 cities in the Pearl River Delta region of southern China into a yet-to-be-named mega city of about 42 million. Existing cities to be included in the project include several already major cities (Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Zhuhai) near Hong Kong. The region is the main manufacturing area of China and the nine cities combined contribute about 10% of China's economy.
The mega city will require huge infrastructure projects over the next 6 years to integrate transportation, energy, and telecommunications throughout the region which are predicted to cost 2 trillion yuan (U.S. $260 billion).
One goal of the project is to spread industry, jobs and public services more evenly across the region. Another is to regain competitive advantage from other growing urban areas around the major cities of Beijing and Shanghai.
The massive changes that have taken place in China over the past 30 years may be best illustrated by the growth of Chinese cities as huge numbers of Chinese migrants have moved to the cities from the countryside. In the late 1970s, China initiated an economic reform program, establishing special economic zones in different areas in order to attract investment and stimulate business. Several of the earliest special economic zones were located in the Pearl River Delta area. Since then, other major cities and surrounding regions have also experienced rapid economic growth and corresponding population increases from rural migration. It is estimated that by 2020, China will have several city zones with populations of 50 to 100 million in addition to even more "small" city areas with populations from 10 to 25 million.
While there is no avoiding the continuing urbanization trend in China since poor rural residents will keep seeking greater opportunity and fortune in the cities, hopefully Chinese government planners will consider the many consequences that will result. Some of these consequences will likely change the basic structure of Chinese society which has always been based on extremely close family connections. In modern urban environments, family ties tend to be looser and ironically, in many ways, people tend to become more isolated from each other. While change and growth are inevitable and often positive, its important to consider what might be lost in the process.
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