Study on Spatial Structure of Yangtze River Delta Urban Agglomeration and Its Effects on Urban and Rural Regions

The Yangtze River delta urban agglomeration of China has experienced a significant development bloom in the last 30 years. To explore the spatial structure, a series of methods have been applied in this study: a mathematical analysis to ascertain the framework of cities in this urban agglomeration, a research on the expansion of completed areas, and population density on the basis of the grid analysis. It has been identified that a single-nucleus and several-centers model could be the best model to suit the spatial structure. This model, similar in many classical cases of spatial-structure model of conurbations and urban agglomerations, can be utilized to speed up urbanization, provide reasonable modes to industry spreading, establish special functional cores, and protect the environment in both urban and rural regions.