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Indicator: HS-06 Population density patterns in major cities

Data

Note:
Inner city areas as defined for these figures include the following Statistical Local Areas (SLAs) (using the 2002 Australian Standard Geographic Classification (ASGC) (cat. 1216.0)):
Inner Sydney - 7070 South Sydney (C), 7201 Sydney (C) Inner, 7202 Sydney (C) Remainder, 5950 North Sydney (A)
Inner Melbourne - 4601 Melbourne (C) Inner. 4605 Melbourne (C) Southbank-Docklands, 4608 Melbourne (C) Remainder
Inner Brisbane - 1143 City Inner, 1146 City Remainder, 1228 Fortitude Valley Inner, 1233 Fortitude Valley Remainder, 1304
Kangaroo Point, 1421 Newfarm, 1427 Newstead, 1525 South Brisbane, 1528 Spring Hill
Inner Adelaide - 0070 Adelaide (C)
Inner Perth - 7081 Perth (C) Inner, 7082 Perth (C) Remainder

Population change in selected Capital cities
Inner city areas vs metropolitan areas 1991-1996-2001

	Number		Percentage (%)
	1991-1996	1996-2001	1991-1996	1996-2001
Inner Sydney	20 513	25 307	15.9	16.9
Sydney SD	208 281	247 136	5.67	6.4
Inner Melbourne	5 057	10 957	14.6	27.6
Melbourne SD	127 702	188 347	4.1	5.7
Inner Brisbane	2 139	7 556	10.0	32.1
Brisbane SD	161 996	130 431	11.9	8.6
Inner Adelaide	1 509	458	13.3	3.6
Adelaide SD	21 276	29 549	2.0	2.7
Inner Perth	894	2 208	19.0	39.4
Perth SD	106 330	97 910	8.9	7.6

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics 2003, Population Growth and Distribution Australia, Australian Bureau of Statistics.

Population and Stock of dwellings in inner cities as a proportion of those in capital cities – 1991 and 2001

	1991	2001
Total Population (a)
Sydney	3.5	4.3
Melbourne	0.9	1.5
Brisbane	1.4	1.8
Adelaide	0.9	1.1
Perth	0.3	0.6
Stock of dwellings (b)
Sydney	5.2	6.2
Melbourne	1.2	2.0
Brisbane	2.1	2.8
Adelaide	1.4	1.6
Perth	0.6	0.9

(a) – Population in inner city as a proportion of population in capital city. Enumerated in private dwellings only during the 1991 and 2002 census.
(b) – Stock of dwellings in inner city as a proportion of stock in capital city. Includes occupied and unoccupied dwellings.

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics 2002, Feature Article - Inner City Development in Building Approvals, Australian Bureau of Statistics, Canberra.

Selected Occupied Private Dwellings*
Australia - 2001

	Separate Houses		High density housing
	Percentage of dwellings	Change in number of dwellings (%)	Percentage of dwellings	Change in number of dwellings (%)	Total Dwellings # ('000)
	2001	1991-2001	2001	1991-2001	2001
Capital cities	72.4	16.1	26.7	36.2	4 453.4
Sydney	63.7	10.2	35.5	36.5	1 438.4
Melbourne	74.5	13.9	24.7	36.0	1 243.4
Brisbane	80.6	25.9	18.3	73.5	601.1
Adelaide	75.5	13.5	24.0	13.9	430.2
Perth	77.9	26.1	21.5	30.5	511.2
Hobart	83.1	15.4	16.2	8.2	76.1
Darwin	62.6	32.8	29.8	55.4	38.2
Canberra	76.9	18.0	22.8	49.6	114.7
Large Population Centres	76.8	40.0	20.8	71.5	1 257.9
Country Areas	86.5	7.0	8.5	-0.1	1 361.0
Australia	75.9	17.5	22.2	37.2	7 072.2

* - Dwellings where the dwelling structure was not stated were excluded prior to the calculation of percentages
# - includes Other dwellings

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics 2003, Censuses of Population and Housing, Australian Bureau of Statistics, Canberra, p. 176.

• 2001 Census: Housing (PDF - 831 KB) 

Change in Population by Regions
Australia - 1991-2001

Region	No. of LGAs	LGAs with population decline		LGAs with population increase
		No.	%	No.	%
Core metro	63	8	13	55	87
Dispersed metro	59	0	0	59	100
Lifestyle	41	0	0	41	100
Production zone	67	13	19	54	81
Resource zone	102	48	47	54	53
Rural	295	178	63	108	37

Notes:
 Core metro – includes inner city regions of capital cities
 Dispersed metro – covers the suburban areas of cities plus regional cities
 Lifestyle regions – are the coastal areas
 Production zones – are areas of heavy industry and manufacturing
 Resource zones – are linked to mining or forestry
 Rural areas – are those dominated by agriculture

Source: Shepherd, C. 2003, The Risk/Reward Trade-off that is shrinking the population of rural Australia, Penguin, Melbourne, p. 161

‘Inner’ city vs ‘Fringe’ city population change

Between 30 June 2001 and 2005 the population of the total 'fringe' area of Australia’s five largest cities (Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane Adelaide and Perth) increased from 2,968,000 to 3,231,000 (up 8.9%). In contrast the population of the total 'inner city' area increased from 80,000 to 105,000 (up 32%); the population of this total 'inner city + surrounds' area increased from 1,672,000 to 1,727,000 (up 3.3%)

Between 30 June 1991 and 1995 the population of the total 'fringe' area increased from 2,407,000 to 2,654,000 (up 10.2%); the population of the total 'inner city' area increased from 59,500 to 69,500 (up 17%) and the population of the total 'inner city + surrounds' area increased from 1,484,000 to 1,505,000 (up 1.4%).

'Fringe' areas are defined as those Local Government Areas (LGAs) that share a border with the external land borders of these five capital city statistical divisions (CCSDs) - but including only those areas within the CCSD.

'Inner city' areas are defined as the LGAs of Melbourne (C), Adelaide (C), Perth (C), and the Statistical Local Areas (SLAs) of Sydney (C) - Inner, (Brisbane) City - Inner and (Brisbane) City - Remainder.

The 'inner city + surrounds' areas are defined as those LGAs (in Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth) and SLAs (in Brisbane) which share a border with the previously-defined 'inner city' areas.

The figures are based on Australia's official population estimates, and were calculated based on the definitions of 'fringe', 'inner city' and 'inner city + surrounds' areas in Australia's five largest CCSDs: Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth. These are not standard geographical classifications. Account has been taken of the different geographies which existed between 1991-1995 and 2001-2005, however the boundaries used to derive these 1991-1995 and the 2001-2005 figures remain slightly different.

What the data mean

Populations of inner cities have grown at a higher rate than those of the metropolitan areas. The highest rate of growth in the 1996-2001 period was seen in inner Perth (39%) followed by inner Brisbane (32%), inner Melbourne (28%) and inner Sydney (17%). Compared to these rates the rates of population growth in the corresponding metropolitan areas were modest - 8%, 9%, 6% and 6% respectively.

The inner city population as a proportion of the metropolitan area population has also increased in all four cities, especially in Sydney, which continues to have the highest proportion.

Comparing the density patterns of the four mega metro regions between 1999 and 2004, the highest increase in population density was seen in South East Queensland (13%) followed by the Perth Corridor (9%) and by Port Phillip region (6%) and Sydney mega-metro region (5%).

The increased population density in inner city areas is reflected in the increase in stock of residential dwellings and the number of new dwellings approved in these inner city areas.

Growth in high density housing was double (37% vs 18%) that of separate housing between 1991 and 2001. The growth pattern in capital cities was similar while in lare population centres the proportion was slightly lower.

Large increases in population continued to occur in many outer Local Government Areas (LGAs) within capital city SDs. Many of Australia’s inner city areas also experienced high levels of growth, although at a lower rate than the outer suburbs. From an overall perspective, it is the outer and middle suburbs that continue to show the major part of urban growth.

Between 2001 and 2005, the population in the 'fringe' area of Australia's five largest capital cities grew by a much larger amount - in absolute terms - than the inner city area. In relative terms however, inner city areas generally grew more than the fringe areas.

It is a similar scenario to 10 years previous (ie. between 1991 and 1995), however the growth disparity between 'fringe' and 'inner' is now less than what it was back then. Between 1991 and 1995, the growth in these 'fringe' areas (in absolute and relative terms) was similar to what it was between 2001 and 2005; however, the growth in inner city areas was lower than it was between 2001 and 2005.

Issues for which this is an indicator and why

Human Settlements — Pressures created by human settlements on the environment - Patterns of settlement 

Population density in major cities is an aspect of settlement patterns that has major implications for the environment of settlements.

Other indicators for this issue:

• HS-30 Average size of new residential lots in capital cities 
• HS-51 Average floor area of new dwellings 
• HS-78 Housing demand 

Further Information

• Population Growth and Distribution, Australia, 2001 
• Population Growth and Distribution, Australia, 2001 - Report 
• Regional Population Growth Australia and New Zealand 2003-04 
• Inner City Development - Building Approvals 
• Australian Social Trends, 2003 

Source: Shepherd, C. 2003, The Risk/Reward Trade-off that is shrinking the population of rural Australia, Penguin, Melbourne.

Source: Barr N 2001, Structural Change in Australian Agriculture: Implications for Natural Resource Management, National Land and Water Resources Audit, Canberra.

Source: Fisher B 2005, Predicting the impacts of climate change on agriculture-a case study of the Australian broadacre industry, ABARE, Canberra.

Source: Newman P 2006, keynote address, Sydney Futures Forum.