Monocentric urban areas are defined by having how many central business districts?

• A. It has a single central business district
• B. It has multiple centers or nuclei
• C. It has no formal center
• D. It has several edge cities but no core

Answer: (A)

Monocentric urban areas have a single central business district—the main hub where most commercial and administrative activity is concentrated. In this setup, everything centers around one core, with land use and transportation organized to funnel people and goods toward that core. As cities grow, activity remains anchored to that one CBD, even though other residential and limited commercial activity expands around it. This is different from polycentric cities, which feature multiple centers of activity (additional hubs or nuclei) rather than one. So, the defining number of central business districts in a monocentric city is one.