中国小城镇空间分布特征及其相关因素

小城镇是推动中国新型城镇化的主要载体之一,研究中国小城镇空间分布特征成为一项重要议题。采用最邻近距离、点密度等空间分析方法,探究中国小城镇空间分布格局,并从地形、人口、经济、区位等方面进行相关因素分析。主要结论包括：① 全国层面,中国小城镇呈“西北疏、东南密”的总体格局特征,形成三大团块集聚区,包括由长三角、山东半岛、京津冀等城市群组成的“弓箭”状集聚区,珠三角、湘中地区形成的“倒T字”型集聚区,以及成渝城市群地区的“圆形”状集聚区;② 小城镇沿北部主要交通干线形成的轴带与东部沿海轴、南部沿（长）江轴共同组成“π”型集聚带,与三大团块集聚区共同构成“团块+轴带”组合式空间集聚形态;③ 区域层面,中国绝大部分省市的小城镇呈均匀分布,但总体均匀程度并不高;④ 小城镇呈集聚分布的省、自治区数量不多,主要集中在内陆边境地带及四川盆地,总体地广人稀;⑤ 小城镇空间分布受自然资源环境、人口疏密、经济发展水平、区位优势度、道路交通条件等客观因素,以及政策导向主观因素的综合影响。未来,建议增强西北地区小城镇扶持政策,多培育小城镇作为发展节点,城市群周边、省会等大城市周边小城镇应注重提升发展质量,传统农区、贫困山区及边远落后地区要重视经济建设及增强道路交通可达性,促进小城镇发展以助力新型城镇化及乡村振兴战略的实施。

Spatial distribution and driving factors of small towns in China

Small towns are regarded as an important carrier to promote China's new urbanization. Understanding the spatial characteristics of small towns in China has become an important issue. This paper explored spatial distribution pattern of small towns in China using the nearest neighbor distance, point density and other spatial analysis methods. In addition, the driving factors, including economy, population, location and natural environment, were analyzed. Our main results were summarized as follows: (1) From the perspective of the national level, spatial density of small towns in southeast China was higher than that in the northeast China. There were three clusters of small towns. The first one was the bow-shaped cluster, covering the Yangtze River Delta, Shandong Peninsula and Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region. The second one was the inverted T-shaped cluster, covering the Pearl River Delta and central Hunan. The third one was a circle-shaped cluster, which was mainly distributed in the Chengdu-Chongqing region. (2) In addition to the clusters, small towns were mainly located along π-shaped belts, along the Lianyungang-Lanzhou Railway, the Yangtze River and the coastline. (3) From the perspective of regional level, small towns in most provincial-level units were evenly distributed. However, the gaps of spatial densities of small towns between different provinces were significant. (4) Only a few provincial-level units were characterized by the concentrated pattern of small towns, including the border provincial-level units and Sichuan province. (5) Spatial distribution of small towns was affected by multiple factors, including natural environment, population density, economic development level, location advantage, road traffic conditions and political factors. In the future, more preferential policies are suggested to enhance the development of small towns in northwest China. Small towns around urban clusters and provincial capitals should focus on improving the development quality. In the small towns located in agricultural areas, mountainous areas and remote rural areas, more attention should be paid to economic construction and enhancement of road accessibility. Our research aimed to promote development of small towns and accelerate the implementation of new urbanization and rural revitalization strategies.