Land-use trends, challenges and opportunities in Amsterdam

This chapter provides a diagnosis of the main trends affecting how land is used now and into the future in Amsterdam. It focuses on both the municipality of Amsterdam and the broader area across which people live, work and commute (in other words, the functional urban area). This chapter contains four sections. The first section describes Amsterdam’s geography and its relationship to the surrounding region, remarking in particular on the region’s polycentricity. This is followed by an assessment of metropolitan Amsterdam’s economy, socio-spatial and demographic trends, housing pressures, and large-scale transportation investments – all of which affect land use. The final section discusses the main pressures on land use in the city, and major challenges and opportunities for how land is used both now and into the future.