The expression "exurb" (for "extra-urban") was coined in the 1950s to describe the ring of prosperous rural communities beyond the suburbs that, due to availability via the new high-speed limited-access highways, were becoming dormitory communities for an urban area. Commuters from early exurbs, such as the end of Philadelphia's Main Line and Upper Westchester County, New York, reached the city center via commuter rail and parkway systems. Rural sociology is a field of sociology associated with the study of life in small towns and the country. ... Sociologists have identified a number of different types of rural communities, which have arisen as a result of changing economic trends within rural regions of industrial nations. ... It has been suggested that Suburbia be merged into this article or section. ... For the historic canal, see Pennsylvania Main Line of Public Works. ... Westchester County is an suburban county with about 940,000 residents located in the U.S. state of New York. ... A parkway is a general designation of a type of limited-access highway in the US and Canada. ...

Today's exurbs comprise small neighborhoods in otherwise bucolic areas, towns, and (comparatively) small cities. Some lie in the outer suburbs of an urbanized area, but a few miles of rural, wooded, or agricultural land separates many exurbs from the suburbs. Exurbs that originated independently of the major city to which many residents commute may feature some cultural institutions or universities of their own. Others, by contrast, consist almost exclusively of commuters and lack the historical and cultural traditions of more established cities.

In his book On Paradise Drive, David Brooks commented on the massive growth of American exurbs in the 1990s and early 2000s, and noted that these communities are now dependent on industries contained in office parks in the suburbs rather than in the city center, producing (and attracting) populations with no connection to urban city life. Brooks attributes the victory of George W. Bush in the 2004 election to votes from exurbs and states his belief that the Democratic Party failed in connecting with voters in exurbs. David Brooks, conservative commentator for the New York Times and other publications. ... // Events and trends The 1990s are generally classified as having moved slightly away from the more conservative 1980s, but keeping the same mind-set. ... Saddam Hussein shortly after his capture Major controversy over U.S. presidential election, 2000 September 11, 2001 terrorist attack on New Yorks World Trade Center and Virginias Pentagon killing almost 3000 people. ... An industrial park is an area of land set aside for industrial development. ... Bush is an IDIOT!Bush is an IDIOT!Bush is an IDIOT!Bush is an IDIOT!Bush is an IDIOT!Bush is an IDIOT!Bush is an IDIOT!Bush is an IDIOT!Bush is an IDIOT!Bush is an IDIOT!Bush is an IDIOT!Bush is an IDIOT!Bush is...

Many environmentalists, architects, and urban planners consider exurbs to be manifestations of poor or distorted planning. Extremely low densities - often featuring large lots and "McMansions" - create heavy car dependency {a very deliberate design choice}. This also makes the construction of municipal infrastructure and deployment of services unusually costly and inefficient. Such communities typically include big box retailers and large shopping malls, but lack ammenities such as parks and cultural institutions. Nevertheless, relatively cheap land and low taxes fuel rapid economic and population growth in many exurbs. Middle class families with children are attracted to the ample space and low costs found in these areas. A diagram of a McMansion on display at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C. (with caption). ... The Mall, an out-of-town shopping centre at Patchway, near Bristol, England. ...

Exurbs are not unique to the United States — they are also found in other land-rich developed countries, notably Canada and Australia.

Although not on the list of exurbs below, some communities that lie outside the city proper of a metropolitan area could also be considered exurbs, whereas those inside are often known as suburbs. Many suburban cities within Metropolitan Toronto enjoyed their greatest growth in the post World War II period and slowed down subsequently; extensive development is now (since the 1990s) occurring outside Metro Toronto (later City of Toronto. There have also been significant growth differences between inside and outside Metro; many developments typical of exurbs such as big box retailers lie on the outside. This could be due to Toronto suburbs being constrained by pro-urban inner-city politics while communities outside Toronto have far less restrictions on development. The Municipality of Metropolitan Toronto was the name of the highest level of municipal government in the Toronto, Ontario, Canada, area from 1954 to 1997. ... Mushroom cloud from the nuclear explosion over Nagasaki rising 18 km (over 11 miles) into the air, August 9, 1945 after the Allied atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. ... Motto: Diversity Our Strength Map of Ontario Counties, Toronto being red Area: 641 sq. ...

Not all exurbs are wealthy. Depending on local circumstances, some exurbs (like those found in Western Sydney or the Inland Empire east of Los Angeles) can demonstrate higher poverty levels than other "closer-in" suburbs of their respective metropolitan regions. Western Sydney is a very general, informal, term which is used to describe the western parts of the metropolitan area of Sydney, Australia. ... There are three places in the United States called the Inland Empire: Inland Empire (California) Inland Empire (Georgia) Inland Empire (Pacific Northwest) This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ...

Example Exurbs

All these examples are debatable; some consider them to be suburbs and some consider them to be separate independent urban areas. Illustration of the backyards of a surburban neighbourhood Suburbs are inhabited districts located either on the outer rim of a city or outside the official limits of a city (the term varies from country to country), or the outer elements of a conurbation. ... The term urban means cities and towns as distinct from rural areas. ...

United States

• Lancaster, California
• Livermore, California
• Simi Valley, California
• Tracy, California
• Lakeland, Florida
• Acworth, Georgia
• Alpharetta, Georgia
• Woodstock, Georgia
• Aurora, Illinois
• Rochester Hills, Michigan
• Henderson, Nevada
• Powell, Ohio
• Hudson, Ohio
• Highstown, New Jersey
• Cary, North Carolina
• Murfreesboro, Tennessee
• Fredericksburg, Virginia
• Marysville, Washington
• Centreville, Virginia

City nickname:The Heart of the Antelope Valley County Los Angeles County, California Area  - Total  - Water 243. ... The city of Livermore highlighted within Alameda County Livermore is a city located in Alameda County, California. ... Simi Valley is an incorporated city located in the extreme southeast corner of Ventura County, California, bordering the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles. ... Tracy is a city located in San Joaquin County, California. ... Lakeland is a city located in Polk County, Florida. ... Acworth is a city located in Cobb County, Georgia. ... Alpharetta is a city located in Fulton County, Georgia. ... Woodstock is a city located in Cherokee County, Georgia. ... Auroras Logo Aurora is a city located in Kane, DuPage, Will and Kendall counties in Illinois. ... Rochester Hills is a city located in Oakland County, Michigan. ... Henderson is the fastest-growing large city (over 150,000 pop. ... Powell is a city located in Delaware County, Ohio. ... Location of Hudson, Ohio Main Street (State Route 91) in Hudson, Ohio The First and Main shopping district of Hudson, Ohio The chapel of Western Reserve Academy in Hudson, Ohio Hudson is a city located in Summit County, Ohio. ... Cary is a town located in Wake County, North Carolina. ... Murfreesboro is a city located in Rutherford County, Tennessee. ... Fredericksburg is an independent city in the U.S. Commonwealth of Virginia, 50 miles south of Washington, D.C., and 55 miles north of Richmond, Virginia. ... Marysville is a city located in Snohomish County, Washington. ... Centreville is an unincorporated place located in Fairfax County, Virginia. ...

Canada

• Mission, British Columbia
• Airdrie, Alberta
• Leduc, Alberta
• Barrie, Ontario
• Milton, Ontario
• Carleton Place, Ontario
• Clarence-Rockland, Ontario
• Vaudreuil-Dorion, Quebec

Mission is a Canadian city, in the province of British Columbia and is situated on the north bank of the Fraser River, overlooking the Fraser Valley. ... Airdrie is a city in Alberta, Canada, located just north of Calgary within the Calgary-Edmonton Corridor. ... For the disambiguation page of Leduc, see Leduc (disambiguation) The area of Leduc, Alberta (53°16′ N 113°32′ W Elevation: about 668 m or 2192 feet), began in 1889 when Robert Taylor Telford settled on a piece of land near a scenic lake. ... Barrie, on Lake Simcoe, Ontario, Canada Barrie, Ontario (2003 population 121,248, metropolitan population 168,492) is located on Kempenfelt Bay, an arm of Lake Simcoe in south-central Ontario, Canada. ... Milton (2004 population 47,500) is a town in southern Ontario, Canada, about 40 km west of Toronto on Highway 401, and is the western terminus for GO Transits Milton Line commuter train and bus corridor. ... Carleton Place (2005 population 9,600) is a town in eastern Ontario, Canada, in the County of Lanark, about one half-hour west of Ottawa on the southern branch of the Trans-Canada Highway. ... Clarence-Rockland is a bilingual city in eastern Ontario, Canada, in the United Counties of Prescott and Russell on the Ottawa River. ... Vaudreuil-Dorion is a city (ville) in southwestern Quebec in Vaudreuil-Soulanges on the Ottawa River (Riviere des Outaouais). ...

Australia

• Blacktown, New South Wales
• Liverpool, New South Wales
• Werribee, Victoria

Blacktown is a suburb and a city (the City of Blacktown) in Sydney, Australia, and is adjacent to Seven Hills, Marayong, and Quakers Hill. ... Liverpool is a suburb and a Local Government Area in New South Wales, Australia, located 32 km (20 miles) southwest of the Sydney central business district. ... This article needs to be wikified. ...

See also

• demographic history of the United States