A Methodology to Define Urban Areas in Intermediate Cities. A Case Study on Inland Spanish Cities (Castilla-La Mancha)

Recent decades have witnessed dramatic transformations in urban structures, which are reflected in intermediate citiesIntermediate cities. Tapping sources of information other than those traditionally used to analyse urbanised and built-up areas helps understand the patterns of spatial reformulation in cities. The cadastre developed by the Spanish Government is a source that can be used for these purposes. This study presents a methodology to analyse the transformation of cities, focusing particularly on the processes of urban sprawlUrban sprawl. As the subject of study, we have selected the five provincial capitals of the Autonomous Community of Castilla-La Mancha (Spain)Castilla-La Mancha Spain and their respective urban areasUrban area to examine the spatial scope and differences in the impact of sprawl, drawing on an analysis of the evolution of the population and housing between 2000 and 2016.