Communauté urbaine

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This article is part of the series on Administrative divisions of France
Regional level
Région (incl. Overseas régions)
Departmental level
Département (incl. Overseas départements)
Arrondissement level
Arrondissement
Cantonal level
Canton
Intercommunal level
Communauté urbaine Communauté d'agglomération Communauté de communes
Communal level
Commune Commune associée Municipal arrondissement
Overseas
Collectivité d'outre-mer Collectivité sui generis Pays d'outre-mer Territoire d'outre-mer Scattered islands Clipperton Island

A communauté urbaine (French for "urban community") is the most integrated form of intercommunality in France. A communauté urbaine is made up of a city (commune) and its independent suburbs (independent communes).

The first communautés urbaines were created by a status of the French Parliament enacted on December 31, 1966. Originally there were only four communautés urbaines, in the metropolitan areas of Bordeaux, Lille, Lyon and Strasbourg. Later, other communautés urbaines were created in other metropolitan areas. The purpose of the communautés urbaines was to achieve cooperation and joint administration between large cities and their independent suburbs. This step often followed failed attempts to merge the communes within a metropolitan area. The status of the communautés urbaines was modified by the Chevènement Law of 1999.

Unlike in the communauté d'agglomération and communauté de communes, a commune cannot leave freely a communauté urbaine.

As of January 1, 2006, there are 14 communautés urbaines in France (all of them in metropolitan France), with 6.22 million people living in them.

[edit] List of the 14 communautés urbaines

(ranked by population as of March 1999 census, in 2006 limits)

1. Urban Community of Lyon (Grand Lyon, or COURLY) – 1,167,532 inhabitants
2. Urban Community of Lille Métropole – 1,091,438
3. Urban Community of Marseille Provence Métropole – 981,769
4. Urban Community of Bordeaux (CUB) – 659,998
5. Urban Community of Nantes (Nantes Métropole) – 554,478
6. Urban Community of Strasbourg (CUS) – 452,609
7. Urban Community of Greater Nancy – 258,268
8. Urban Community of Brest (Brest Métropole Océane) – 213,545
9. Urban Community of Dunkerque (Dunkerque Grand Littoral) – 208,705
10. Urban Community of Le Mans Métropole – 188,665
11. Creusot Montceau Urban Community – 92,292
12. Urban Community of Arras – 89 451
13. Urban Community of Cherbourg – 88,588
14. Urban Community of Alençon – 49,957