Centralities and New Activities in the Spanish-Portuguese Borderland

Abstract

The Spanish-Portuguese international border, known as the Iberian Raya, is, since the European integration of the two states, a cross-border cooperation space where can address multiple phenomena and relevant problems from spatial analysis. In this article it is paid attention, first, to communications and border flows as well as the network of central places at different hierarchical levels and forms of settlement, in the form of conurbated complexes and urban enclaves along transnational corridors or local circulation border crossings. Second, new or renewed economic activities, arising in the context of cross-border cooperation and classified in commercial, financial or thermal types are analyzed, and according to new consumer behaviors and destinations of travelers in these spaces and border areas, leading to a process of de-bordering, which can be expected to have impact on spatial planning and governance of this vast territory.