Great Lakes Megalopolis
The Great Lakes Megalopolis consists of the group of metropolitan areas in North America largely in the Great Lakes region and along the Saint Lawrence River. It extends from the Midwestern United States in the south and west to western Pennsylvania and Upstate New York in the east and northward through Southern Ontario into southwestern Quebec in Canada. It is the most populated and largest megalopolis in North America.
At its most inclusive, in the United States the region cuts a wide swath from the Twin Cities in Minnesota in the west, south to St.Louis and Louisville, Kentucky, and east to Rochester, New York; in Canada, it continues northeasterly to Quebec City. This broader region had an estimated population of 59,144,461 as of 2011 and is projected to reach a population of about 65 million by 2025. Within this broad region, there is a core area of more continual urban development that includes Chicago, Milwaukee, Grand Rapids, South Bend, Detroit, Cleveland, Toledo, Pittsburgh, Buffalo, Rochester, Hamilton, Toronto and metropolitan areas between these.
History of the concept
The region was partially outlined as an emergent megalopolis in the 1961 book Megalopolis: The Urbanized Northeastern Seaboard of the United States by French geographer Jean Gottmann. Gottmann envisaged the development of other megalopolises in the U.S.: from Boston to Washington, D.C., from Chicago to Pittsburgh, and from San Francisco to San Diego.In 1965, futurist Herman Kahn speculated about the three megalopolises in the year 2000. In the 1960s and 1970s, urban planner and architect Constantinos Doxiadis wrote books, studies, and reports about the growth potential of the Great Lakes Megalopolis. Doxiadis envisioned Detroit as the central urban area in this megalopolis, which he defined as extending "from Milwaukee and Chicago to Detroit, Pittsburgh and Buffalo and into Canada from Windsor to Montreal and Quebec".
In 2005, the Virginia Tech Metropolitan Institute's Beyond Megalopolis, an attempt to update Gottmann's work, outlined a similar "Midwest" megapolitan area as one of ten such areas in the United States. Over 200 million tons of cargo are shipped annually through the Great Lakes. The America 2050 project identified 11 Megaregions of the United States, including the Great Lakes Megalopolis. The Canadian part of the region is also referred to as the Quebec City–Windsor Corridor, and the densest part in Southern Ontario has long been known as the Golden Horseshoe.
Governments
There are multiple government jurisdictions throughout the megalopolis. In addition to the federal governments of the United States and Canada, there are multiple U.S. state and two Canadian province jurisdictions, and many county and local governments. Most of the states have joined the provinces in forming the Conference of Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Governors and Premiers to coordinate economic and environmental strategies throughout most of the region.Economy
According to the Brookings Institution, if it stood alone as a country, the economy of the Great Lakes region, which includes most of the Great Lakes Megalopolis, would be one of the largest economic units in the world with a $4.5-trillion gross regional product, roughly equal to Japan's. The five Great Lakes contain one-fifth of the world's surface fresh water and have a combined shoreline of 10,210 miles. About 200 million tons of cargo are shipped through the Great Lakes each year.Tourism is important to the region's economy. The Great Lakes Cruising Coalition supports passenger ship cruises through a joint U.S-Canadian venture to Great Lakes Ports and the Saint Lawrence Seaway.
The Chicago metropolitan area, also called Chicagoland, is the largest metro economy in the Great Lakes Megalopolis. Chicago has one of the largest global urban area economies.
Education
The Great Lakes Megalopolis is home to several of the most prestigious universities in the United States, including the University of Michigan, University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign, University of Chicago, Northwestern University, University of Notre Dame, Washington University in St. Louis, and Case Western Reserve University. The region also contains large public universities such as the University of Minnesota, University of Toronto, University of Wisconsin, University of Missouri, The Ohio State University, Indiana University, Purdue University, Michigan State University, and the University at Buffalo.Major land and marine transportation corridors
The Great Lakes Megalopolis includes the following major inter-urban corridors that are provided with freeway and passenger rail service in both the core and fringe areas of the mega-region. Major waterways for shipping and cruising are also indicated where applicable. Amtrak in the United States and Via Rail in Canada offer rail passenger service, while most Class I freight rail services also connect these points. A major rail shipping service in both Canada and the United States is provided on tracks owned by Canadian National Railway Company.Chicago-Minneapolis/St. Paul
This corridor occupies the northwestern fringe of the megalopolis. It occupies northern Illinois, southern Wisconsin, and parts of eastern Minnesota. Interstate 94 and Amtrak rail run roughly parallel from Chicago to Minneapolis/St. Paul by way of Milwaukee and Madison, Wisconsin.Chicago-St. Louis
, Amtrak, and the Illinois Waterway connect Chicago to St. Louis.Chicago-Indianapolis-Cincinnati
extends from the Chicago area southeast to Indianapolis, where Interstate 74 travels through to Cincinnati. Amtrak runs regular service along this same route.Chicago-Buffalo-Rochester
and Amtrak run approximately parallel through the core area of the megalopolis from Chicago to Cleveland via South Bend, Indiana, and Toledo, Ohio, then into the eastern fringe area comprising Buffalo and Rochester, New York. Amtrak also has a passenger rail link from Cleveland to Pittsburgh which is roughly paralleled by Interstate 76. The main water route deviates well to the north of the land route from Chicago to Detroit. It runs north along Lake Michigan, east through the Straits of Mackinac, then south along Lake Huron, the St. Clair River, and Lake St Clair to the Detroit River. From this point, the water route roughly parallels the land route to Rochester by way of Lake Erie, the Welland Canal, and Lake Ontario.Chicago-Detroit
takes a more northerly route than I-90 through the megalopolis core area east of Chicago. It extends from that city to the west end of the Windsor-Quebec City Corridor by way of Kalamazoo, Ann Arbor, Detroit, and Port Huron, Michigan/Sarnia, Ontario. This interstate freeway is also paralleled by Amtrak rail service. The main water route is the same as for the western part of the Chicago-Rochester water corridor from Lake Michigan to the Detroit River.Windsor-Quebec City
The core area of the Great Lakes megalopolis extends as far northeast as Toronto in Ontario, Canada. The remainder of the Windsor-Quebec City Corridor northeast of Toronto lies along the northeastern fringe of the megaregion. The entire Canadian section of the broader megaregion is sometimes considered a separate megalopolis. Key freeways include Highway 401 and Highway 417 in Ontario which connect with Autoroute 20 and Autoroute 40 respectively in Quebec. Highway 416 and Autoroute 50 link the National Capital Region with Highway 401 and the Montreal area respectively, but the two freeways do not link directly with each other across the Ontario-Quebec border. Passenger rail service is provided in both provinces by the Via Rail Corridor Service. Intermediate points along the corridor include London, Kitchener, Hamilton, St. Catharines, Toronto, Kingston, Ottawa, and Montreal. The main water shipping route is the same as for the eastern part of the Chicago-Rochester corridor, starting at the Detroit River but continuing east beyond Lake Ontario along the St. Lawrence Seaway to Quebec City and the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Toronto, Hamilton, St. Catharines, and Niagara Falls, Ontario in Canada and Niagara Falls, New York and Buffalo in the United States also form an almost continuous urban area.Secondary land or marine transportation corridors
Several corridors have interstate highways but no comprehensive passenger rail service. These highway routes pass through both core and fringe areas of the Great Lakes megalopolis. The upper Great lakes region has a marine corridor that connects Lakes Superior, Huron, and Michigan. However, this route does not include parallel Amtrak passenger rail or interstate highway service.Kansas City-Pittsburgh
follows the southern fringe of the megaregion. It runs from Kansas City to just south of Pittsburgh by way of St. Louis, Indianapolis, and Columbus, Ohio.Detroit-Grand Rapids
serves traffic between the Detroit and Grand Rapids metro areas. The route passes through Lansing on the way and extends to Muskegon to the northwest of Grand RapidsEvansville-Indianapolis-Port Huron
extends from Evansville to Martinsville, Indiana,. From there, the route is temporarily an arterial highway, Indiana State Road 37, to the I-465 ring-road around Indianapolis. From there, I-69 resumes and continues to the west end of the Windsor-Quebec City Corridor which carries the route into southern Ontario and southern Quebec provinces. Intermediate points include Fort Wayne, Indiana, and Lansing, Flint, and Port Huron, Michigan/Sarnia, Ontario.Cincinnati-Saginaw
runs from Saginaw, Michigan, to Cincinnati by way of Detroit, and Toledo, Lima, and Dayton, Ohio.Duluth-Lake Huron
The waterway connecting Duluth, Minnesota, and western Lake Superior to points east and south includes the Soo Locks connecting to Lake Huron, then south to Port Huron MI/Sarnia ON or through the Straits of Mackinac to the metropolitan areas around Lake Michigan.Selected American and Canadian population centers
American Statistical Areas Along the Great Lakes
Along the Great Lakes, there are 27 United States statistical areas - 13 Combined Statistical Areas, 3 Metropolitan Statistical Areas, and 12 Micropolitan Statistical Areas, as defined by the Office of Management and Budget.The following sortable table lists the 27 statistical areas of the United States located on the Great Lakes with the following information:
- Statistical areas on this table are based on the map to the right. All of these statistical areas are located along the Great Lakes.
- Populations are based on lists from: Combined Statistical Areas, Metropolitan Statistical Areas, and Micropolitan Statistical Areas.
- This list excludes Canadian cities along the Great Lakes.
| Rank | Map Reference Number | Combined Statistical Area | 2018 Population | 2010 Population | Change | Lake |
| 1 | 16 | Chicago-Naperville, IL-IN-WI CSA | Lake Michigan | - | - | |
| 2 | 15 | Detroit-Warren-Ann Arbor, MI CSA | Lake Erie and Lake Huron | - | - | |
| 3 | 21 | Cleveland-Akron-Canton, OH CSA | Lake Erie | - | - | |
| 4 | 13 | Milwaukee-Racine-Waukesha, WI CSA | Lake Michigan | - | - | |
| 5 | 14 | Grand Rapids-Kentwood-Muskegon, MI CSA | Lake Michigan | - | - | |
| 6 | 24 | Buffalo-Cheektowaga-Olean, NY CSA | Lake Erie and Lake Ontario | - | - | |
| 7 | 25 | Rochester-Batavia-Seneca Falls, NY CSA | Lake Ontario | - | - | |
| 9 | 19 | Toledo-Fremont, OH CSA | Lake Erie | - | - | |
| 8 | 26 | Syracuse-Auburn, NY CSA | Lake Ontario | - | - | |
| 10 | 17 | Kalamazoo-Battle Creek-Portage, MI CSA | Lake Michigan | - | - | |
| 11 | 12 | Saginaw-Bay City-Saginaw Township North, MI CSA | Lake Huron | - | - | |
| 12 | 9 | Green Bay-Shawano, WI CSA | Lake Michigan | - | - | |
| 13 | 22 | Erie-Meadville, PA CSA | Lake Erie | - | - | |
| 14 | 1 | Duluth, MN-WI MSA | Lake Superior | - | - | |
| 15 | 18 | Niles, MI MSA | Lake Michigan | - | - | |
| 16 | 7 | Traverse City, MI μSA | Lake Michigan | - | - | |
| 17 | 23 | Jamestown-Dunkirk-Fredonia, NY μSA | Lake Erie | - | - | |
| 18 | 11 | Sheboygan, WI MSA | Lake Michigan | - | - | |
| 19 | 27 | Watertown-Fort Atkinson, NY μSA | Lake Ontario | - | - | |
| 20 | 10 | Manitowoc, WI μSA | Lake Michigan | - | - | |
| 21 | 20 | Sandusky, OH μSA | Lake Erie | - | - | |
| 22 | 3 | Marquette, MI μSA | Lake Superior | - | - | |
| 23 | 6 | Marinette, WI-MI μSA | Lake Michigan | - | - | |
| 24 | 2 | Houghton, MI μSA | Lake Superior | - | - | |
| 25 | 4 | Sault Ste. Marie, MI μSA | Lake Huron and Lake Superior | - | - | |
| 26 | 5 | Escanaba, MI μSA | Lake Michigan | - | - | |
| 27 | 8 | Alpena, MI μSA | Lake Huron | - | - |
The following four sortable tables list the 27 census statistical areas of the United States located on the Great Lakes, by lake, with the following information:
- Populations are based on lists from: Combined Statistical Areas, Metropolitan Statistical Areas, and Micropolitan Statistical Areas.
- The list excludes Canadian cities along the Great Lakes.
| Rank | Map Reference Number | Census Statistical Area | 2018 Population | Comment |
| 1 | 15 | Detroit-Warren-Ann Arbor, MI CSA | 5,353,002 | Also located on Lake Huron. |
| 2 | 12 | Cleveland-Akron-Canton, OH CSA | 3,599,264 | |
| 3 | 24 | Buffalo-Cattaraugus-Olean, NY CSA | 1,206,992 | Also located on Lake Ontario. |
| 4 | 19 | Toledo-Fremont, OH CSA | 833,576 | |
| 5 | 22 | Erie, PA MSA | 357,124 | |
| 6 | 23 | Jamestown-Dunkirk-Fredonia, NY μSA | 127,939 | |
| 7 | 20 | Sandusky, OH MSA | 74,615 |
| Rank | Map Reference Number | Census Statistical Area | 2018 Population | Comment |
| 1 | 16 | Chicago-Naperville-Michigan City, IL-IN-WI CSA | 9,886,910 | |
| 2 | 13 | Milwaukee-Racine-Waukesha, WI CSA | 2,049,391 | |
| 3 | 14 | Grand Rapids-Muskegon-Holland, MI CSA | 1,406,918 | |
| 4 | 17 | Kalamazoo-Battle Creek-Portage, MI CSA | 504,022 | |
| 5 | 9 | Green Bay-Shawano, WI CSA | 367,045 | |
| 6 | 18 | Niles-Benton Harbor, MI MSA | 154,151 | |
| 7 | 7 | Traverse City, MI μSA | 149,914 | |
| 8 | 11 | Sheboygan, WI MSA | 115,456 | |
| 9 | 10 | Manitowoc, WI μSA | 79,074 | |
| 10 | 6 | Marinette, WI-MI μSA | 63,471 | |
| 11 | 5 | Escanaba, MI μSA | 35,857 |
| Rank | Map Reference Number | Census Statistical Area | 2018 Population | Comment |
| 1 | 1 | Duluth, MN-WI MSA | 278,799 | |
| 2 | 3 | Marquette, MI μSA | 66,516 | |
| 3 | 4 | Sault Ste. Marie, MI μSA | 37,517 | Also located on Lake Huron |
| 4 | 2 | Houghton, MI μSA | 38,332 |