The Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium
Urban Stud. 2011;48(4):699-717. doi: 10.1177/0042098010366764.
The electoral and political consequences of suburbanisation recently regained interest in the Anglo-Saxon literature, pointing to a growing polarisation between city and suburban fringe. This paper analyses these processes in the Antwerp urban region and shows the development of a similar electoral divide that is supported by the political parties involved. These observations add to the existing evidence that city–suburban polarisation in Belgium cannot be simply equated with the Anglo-Saxon experience, where a complete suburban fencing off from the city is observable. Rather, because of the comparatively limited development of functions in the Belgian suburbs, a suburban discourse emerges that focuses on safe and accessible cities for the suburban user, yet without much reference to its present inhabitants.
郊区化的选举和政治后果最近重新引起了英美学界的兴趣，指出城市和郊区边缘之间的两极分化日益加剧。本文分析了安特卫普城市地区的这些过程，并展示了类似的选举分歧的发展，这一趋势得到了相关政党的支持。这些观察结果增加了现有证据，表明比利时的城市-郊区两极分化不能简单地等同于英美的经验，在英美，郊区完全与城市隔绝。相反，由于比利时郊区的功能发展相对有限，出现了一种郊区话语，强调为郊区用户提供安全和便利的城市，但几乎没有提及当前居民。
