On the importance of the 'location package' for Urban growth

Urban location is a multidimensional phenomenon: its dimensions are attributes, natural and man-made, which together affect urban performance. To capture their combined effect, the paper introduces the concept of 'location package' - i.e. the set of location-related advantages enjoyed by an urban place, such as proximity to other population centres, climate and topography. The hypothesis is that looking at urban location as a package of attributes, whose components may enhance or detract from each other, improves the empirical estimates of the effect of location on urban performance. This hypothesis is tested using population growth data on urban settlements in 40 European countries.