Modern tendencies in developing net of settlements of municipality Smederevo

Net of settlements of municipality Smederevo consists of Smederevo city and 26 rural settlements. It is a subsystem of the Belgrade metropolitan region. It has 120,000 inhabitants, and 70,000 of them live in town. From 1960 to 2000 it passes through phase of intensive demographic and functional transformation. Processes of demographic redistribution, deagrarization and urbanization are especially emphasized, caused by polarization influence of Smederevo city. From 1960 to 1980 population was developing by natural and migration components, but in villages occurred emigration of young population and caused increased average of older people and intensive decrease of population growth, which became negative. Demographic growth occurs only in periurban settlements, while stagnation and depopulation are typical for other settlements. Process of functional transformation of settlements is apparent also. Relative single functionality with dominant industry and slow diversification function are characteristic for Smederevo city, while villages are transforming from pure rural to rural-industrial and rural-obliging. It caused their progressive urbanization that is especially expressed in periurban settlements and along main traffic communications. In following period the aim is demographic and functional decentralization of net of settlements, by taking planning measures according to the model of center of villages group