Randstad Holland: A 'World City'?

The paper deals with the application of the concept of world city to the urban phenomenon of Randstad Holland. The enquiry into Randstad Holland as a world city in the making is motivated by the recent designation of Amsterdam, the Hague and Rotterdam by national planning authorities as international centres. After reviewing the evolution of the world city concept, the article specifies the main characteristics of a world city as an international management centre; a concentration of advanced producer services; and a very high level of physical and social infrastructure. Various studies of the European urban system are reviewed in order to identify the position of the Randstad within the new European urban hierarchy. Most of these studies position the Randstad among the four or five European urban agglomerations which can be defined as having marked world city characteristics. The empirical part of the article deals with internationalisation processes of the Randstad economy and draws some policy implications for the future planning and development of the Randstad.