Trail of urbanisation

Published March 27, 2012
A view of downtown Johannesburg. The city, once a bastion of apartheid South Africa, became a case study in urban decay in the 1990s as a shocking crime wave terrorised the city, leaving squatters to take over buildings that fell into squalor. Most businesses and residents moved to safer neighbourhoods, leaving the city centre a place dominated by slumlords exploiting the poor. ? AFP Photo
A view of downtown Johannesburg. The city, once a bastion of apartheid South Africa, became a case study in urban decay in the 1990s as a shocking crime wave terrorised the city, leaving squatters to take over buildings that fell into squalor. Most businesses and residents moved to safer neighbourhoods, leaving the city centre a place dominated by slumlords exploiting the poor. ? AFP Photo
Cars and buses share the road along Stockton Street in San Francisco, California. A Treasury Department report finds that Americans are wasting close to 1.9 billion gallons of gasoline each year sitting in traffic on congested roads. On the average, drivers are paying around $4 per gallon for gasoline. ? AFP Photo
Cars and buses share the road along Stockton Street in San Francisco, California. A Treasury Department report finds that Americans are wasting close to 1.9 billion gallons of gasoline each year sitting in traffic on congested roads. On the average, drivers are paying around $4 per gallon for gasoline. ? AFP Photo
A couple rests at a table in Times Square in New York City. A recent study found that the Times Square district contributes up to 10% of all jobs in the city and is responsible for approximately 11% of economic activity. ? AFP Photo
A couple rests at a table in Times Square in New York City. A recent study found that the Times Square district contributes up to 10% of all jobs in the city and is responsible for approximately 11% of economic activity. ? AFP Photo
People walk through the Canary Wharf business district in London. A record number of London developers looking to build bespoke neighbourhoods from scratch will be emulating the success of centuries-old aristocratic landowning dynasties who have helped transform the capital city in the past 50 years. Developments like the 67-acre scheme in the King's Cross district and a 2,818-home plan for the Olympics site are among a dozen projects that have taken lessons from the likes of Grosvenor and Cadogan Estates, areas fo
People walk through the Canary Wharf business district in London. A record number of London developers looking to build bespoke neighbourhoods from scratch will be emulating the success of centuries-old aristocratic landowning dynasties who have helped transform the capital city in the past 50 years. Developments like the 67-acre scheme in the King's Cross district and a 2,818-home plan for the Olympics site are among a dozen projects that have taken lessons from the likes of Grosvenor and Cadogan Estates, areas fo
A businessman rides an escalator in the financial district of Pudong in Shanghai. Many foreign investors in China have been hit by a steady rise in wages - which puts them in the same boat as many U.S. businesses in China responding to a survey released on Monday by the American Chamber of Commerce. After decades of aggressive expansion in China, foreign employers like U.S. lawnmower manufacturer Briggs & Stratton face a relative shortage of experienced, English-speaking engineers and managers, and find it incr
A businessman rides an escalator in the financial district of Pudong in Shanghai. Many foreign investors in China have been hit by a steady rise in wages - which puts them in the same boat as many U.S. businesses in China responding to a survey released on Monday by the American Chamber of Commerce. After decades of aggressive expansion in China, foreign employers like U.S. lawnmower manufacturer Briggs & Stratton face a relative shortage of experienced, English-speaking engineers and managers, and find it incr
A masked demonstrator runs past burning debris near a bus stop in Nantes, after several thousand people took part in a protest against the building of an airport at Notre Dame des Landes, some 30 km (19 miles) from Nantes. The contruction is scheduled to be end by 2017. ? Reuters Photo
A masked demonstrator runs past burning debris near a bus stop in Nantes, after several thousand people took part in a protest against the building of an airport at Notre Dame des Landes, some 30 km (19 miles) from Nantes. The contruction is scheduled to be end by 2017. ? Reuters Photo
This picture taken through a broken window shows derelict buildings and renovated building (R) in the city centre of Johannesburg. Downtown Johannesburg, once a bastion of apartheid South Africa, become a case study in urban decay in the 1990s as a shocking crime wave terrorised the city. Over the last decade, the city has made a concerted effort to reverse the decline. The Johannesburg Development Agency took charge of public spaces, and an Urban Development Zone offered tax breaks to develop certain neighbourhood
This picture taken through a broken window shows derelict buildings and renovated building (R) in the city centre of Johannesburg. Downtown Johannesburg, once a bastion of apartheid South Africa, become a case study in urban decay in the 1990s as a shocking crime wave terrorised the city. Over the last decade, the city has made a concerted effort to reverse the decline. The Johannesburg Development Agency took charge of public spaces, and an Urban Development Zone offered tax breaks to develop certain neighbourhood
A man holds up a kite as he helps to fly it at a demolition site near residential areas in Shijiazhuang, Hebei province. China should be ready to cope with "extreme risks" in the economy from a sharper global downturn, although the country is on track to grow a healthy 8.5 percent this year, a senior economist at the cabinet's think-tank said on Thursday. ? Reuters Photo
A man holds up a kite as he helps to fly it at a demolition site near residential areas in Shijiazhuang, Hebei province. China should be ready to cope with "extreme risks" in the economy from a sharper global downturn, although the country is on track to grow a healthy 8.5 percent this year, a senior economist at the cabinet's think-tank said on Thursday. ? Reuters Photo

Trace the path of urban decay, wastage, renewal and growth in this selection of photographs related to business. – Photos by Agencies

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