Greater Polaris City Area

The Greater Polaris City Area is a metropolitan area situated in central New Westshield in the Federal Republic of Polaris. The region is considered the largest metropolitan centre in all of Polaris in terms of population, home to nearly 17.5 million, comprising nearly three-quarters of the New Westshieldan population.

The largest city and namesake of the region is Polaris City, which boasts a population of nearly 12 million residents. The Greater Polaris City Area is divided into six regional municipalities: the Metropolitan Consolidated Region, the Lamett Region, the Hardt Region, the Gilderson Region, the Cordin Region and the Larkin Region. Each regional municipality has its own government, public services, and constituent cities, towns, and townships.

The GPCA is considered the economic powerhouse and political centre of the Federal Republic of Polaris. Polaris City, beyond its roles as state and federal capitals, contains the head offices of numerous corporations snd banks. The region also maintains a thriving manufacturing sector which specializes in superconductors, automotive vehicles, aircraft, and clean technology.

Polaris is also a hub for domestic and international transportation, with the second-busiest passenger rail terminal in the continent, Polaris/Joinville Plaza Terminal, and airport, Polaris City International Airport. Millions of passengers and thousands of tons of cargo are moved through transportation hubs throughout the GPCA, which continue to support the economic success of the region.

History
Settlement of the Polaris City area began in the late 19th century with the settlement of the Polar Islands as a remote trading and defense outpost in Baile Átha within the High Penguin Confederacy. The eventual takeover of Antarctica by the Khanzem regime would stem the growth of present-day Polaris City, until at least the 1940s, with the anti-Kingfish "Liberal Awakening" that liberalized the city economically, socially, and politically.

It was in the 1950s that Polarians began to leave inner cities for newly-established suburban developments outside of the Polaris City limits. The first suburban community to emerge was the city of Ferdon, which had been the site of various iron and steel foundries until it was rezoned as a suburb. The emphasis on a car-friendly environment, as common throughout much of the early development of suburbs in 20th century Antarctica resulted in the construction of various beltways and expressways in the Greater Polaris City Area. Alongside highways, the Water Kingdom government also developed the first commuter rail services, with the Polar Islands Rail Commission (now Metrex) beginning services in 1958, initially serving the Shore Line, from Ferdon to Victory Hill.

Municipal governance under the Water Kingdom treated the present constituent regions of the GPCA as individual counties, each governed by a County Commission. It was not until 1985 that the City of Polaris was partitioned from the Larkin Region to from the independent city of Polaris. Though the rise of Puffish rule in the continent would seemed to have threatened the municipal structure of Polaris, it was left largely intact by colonial officials, albeit with diminished capabilities.

The GPCA was first formally arranged through the Cordley Agreement, a statement of understanding between municipal officials from each of the counties in 2005 to create an informal Greater Polaris City Area, and a common economic zone. The GPCA would collaborate to promote Polarian industry abroad, and distributing the benefits among the constituent cities accordingly.

The formation of the Federal Republic of Polaris, and the state of New Westshield would result in negotiations to formalize the Greater Polaris City Area. The former counties were reorganized into more powerful regional municipalities, with Polaris City being administered under the Metropolitan Consolidated Region. The Greater Polaris City Act, 2012, passed in the New Westshield Legislature, established the elected Greater Polaris Municipal Council, that would oversee municipal affairs in the region and coordinate public utilities and goods such as education, government services, electricity, and water.

Constituent municipalities

 * Polaris City (12.4 million)

Larkin Region
Population:1,117,576

Constituent municipalities

 * City of Ferdon (954,839)
 * City of Wintach (162,737)

Hardt Region
Population:1,240,575

Constituent municipalities

 * City of Ainsover (507,745)
 * City of Calburne (692,830)

Lammett Region
Population:609,150

Constituent municipalities

 * City of Milshurst (551,300)
 * Town of Kirk Falls (57,850)

Gilderson Region
Population:1,077,603

Constituent municipalities

 * City of Rogerston (1,028,420)
 * Town of Woollard (49,183)

Cordin Region
Population:877,106

Constituent municipalities

 * City of Teague Hill (863,923)
 * Town of Dunworth (113,183)

Bolded constituent municipalities denote regional seats

Economy
The Greater Polaris City Area is a commercial, distribution and economic centre, and is considered the third-largest financial center in Antarctica. The region generates 39% of the Polarian national GDP and is headquarters to 67% of major Polarian corporations. The GPCA relies primarily on the manufacturing, finance, government services, transportation, and construction, which amounts to $5.46 trillion in GDP as of 2016, a GDP per capita distribution of about $321,176.

The GPCA contains one of the lowest unemployment rates in the Federal Republic of Polaris, at 5.7% as of July 2017. It is estimated that 58% of the GPCA labour force is employed in the services sector,with another 26% employed in manufacturing. The GPCA is also advantaged by the strong educational attainment in the region, with over 68% of Polarian workers holding some sort of post-secondary degree, though this figure is significantly lower for older generations of Polarians.

As the national capital, the largest employer in the GPCA is the Federal Government of Polaris, which has approximately 275,000 in the region alone. The second largest employer is the State Government of New Westshield, which has approximately 85,000 employees. It is estimated that government services account for more than $585 billion in direct economic impact within the region alone. The majority of these workers are based in the Polaris Capitol District, though many are dispersed in departmental branch offices throughout the region.

Another significant industry in the GPCA is the financial services sector, which hosts the operational headquarters for numerous banks, investment firms, and other financial institutions. This includes Polaribank, Watertrust, Bank of the Polar Islands, and Enderby Western Bank. In addition, the Polaris Stock Exchange is situated in Polaris City, and contains the third-most listings and the third-largest market capitalization among stock exchanges in the Antarctic.

Public transportation
Public transportation in the GPCA is overseen by the Metropolitan Amalgamated Public Transit Authority (MAPTA), a sister agency of the national Polaris Amalgamated Rail Transit Authority. MAPTA acts as an umbrella organization for various regional transit operators, including:


 * Polaris City Transit
 * Polaris Metro
 * Polaris LRT
 * Lammett Regional Transit
 * Milshurst Expressrail
 * Gilderson Transit Authority
 * Teague Hill Rapid Rail
 * Cordin Transit
 * Rogerston LRT
 * Larkin Regional Transit
 * Hardt Public Transit

Most public transit operators in the Greater Polaris City Area provide bus and bus rapid transit services, in addition to Accessible Transit Services as mandated by New Westshieldan law. Polaris City Transit, more notably, operates the Polaris Metro, an underground subway network serving approximately sixteen lines in GPCA (with limited service to Ferdon, Calburne, Rogerston, and Teague Hill), 245 stations, and an estimated ridership of 1.28 billion annually.

PARTA, through MAPTA, also runs Metrex commuter rail, which provides heavy rail services to Polaris' suburbs serving nine lines, including the Airport Link rail line. Metrex operates using bi-level carriages and high-speed electric trains, and is in the process of upgrading all of its lines to accommodate full-day, two-way service. Metrex has an estimated annual ridership of 145 million as of 2016, an increase of 2.0% from the year prior.

Highways
Construction of the first controlled-access roads in Polaris began in 1932 under the Kingfish regime. The road, initially a four-lane road, connected Rogerston, the administrative centre for the Polar Islands’ District, and Polaris Island. The highway, now designated as PH-53, has been in continued use since then, and has expanded from four to twelve lanes. A portion of PH-53, runs along the western bank of the Barron River, and has been designated as the Kelson Memorial Freeway.

In addition, Polaris also has three belt ways that traverse the MCR, PH-22, PH-24, and PH-26, built respectively in 1965, 1974, and 1986. The longest of these routes is PH-26, at 188 kilometres. The beltways are a crucial bypass for commercial traffic from the gridlock of Polaris City, also providing a connection across the different regions in the GPCA.

Running along the coast is the Sandherst Freeway, also known as PH-20, that connects Polaris’ coastal suburbs to Polaris Island. The route, however, is interrupted briefly for 7 kilometers as it becomes Capitol Avenue on Polaris Island.

There are numerous interstate highways that connect to the GPCA. Four highways, PH-1, PH-3, PH-7, and PH-13 run east-west to Hampton, Enderby, and Malherd. Three highways, PH-73, PH-77 and PH-81 connect Polaris City to southern New Westshield and Eastshield.

The economic impact of the Polarian Highway Network cannot be understated. Trillions of dollars of commerce rely on these roads, especially in Polaris City, given its status as a node for transportation and logistics in Polaris.