Large multifunctional suburban centres and the transformation of the suburban realm

The paper contributes to the present reflection on the transformation of the suburb by investigating the capacity of large multifunctional suburban centres (LMSCs) to provide public transit- and walking-conducive environments within the suburban realm. To this end, it investigates land-use and commuter journey patterns of the 13 largest suburban multifunctional centres in Canada. The study exposes difficulties in using LMSCs as recentralization instruments meant to “urbanize” the suburb by making it more public transit- and walking-oriented. It points to tensions within LMSCs between playing the role of activity centre and adopting land-use configurations conducive to public-transit use and walking. The stronger is the centrality role of an LMSC, the more it is overtaken by automobiles from its dispersed suburban surroundings. Alternatively, LMSCs can generate weak centrality effects while performing as effective transit-oriented developments. The paper concludes by highlighting difficulties in overcoming suburban transportation and land-use path dependencies.