The Cologne Bonn Region (German: ''Region Köln/Bonn'') is a

metropolitan area A metropolitan area or metro is a region that consists of a densely populated urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories sharing industries, commercial areas, transport network, infrastructures and housing. A metro area usually ...

North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly shortened to NRW (), is a state (''Land'') in Western Germany. With more than 18 million inha ...

(NRW),

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...

, covering the cities of

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and 3.6 millio ...

Bonn The federal city of Bonn ( lat, Bonna) is a city on the banks of the Rhine in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, with a population of over 300,000. About south-southeast of Cologne, Bonn is in the southernmost part of the Rhine-Ru ...

and

Leverkusen Leverkusen () is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, on the eastern bank of the Rhine. To the south, Leverkusen borders the city of Cologne, and to the north the state capital, Düsseldorf. With about 161,000 inhabitants, Leverkusen is o ...

, as well as the districts of Rheinisch-Bergischer Kreis,

Oberbergischer Kreis The Oberbergischer Kreis ( ksh, Boverbärjische Kreiß) is a ''Kreis'' (district) in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Neighboring districts are Ennepe-Ruhr, Märkischer Kreis, Olpe, Altenkirchen, Rhein-Sieg, Rheinisch-Bergischer ...

Rhein-Erft-Kreis The Rhein-Erft-Kreis ( ksh, Rhing-Ärff-Kries) is a district in the west of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Neighboring districts are Neuss, district-free Cologne, Rhein-Sieg, Euskirchen, Düren. History The district in its current borders wa ...

and

Rhein-Sieg-Kreis The Rhein-Sieg-Kreis ( ksh, Rhein-Siech-Kreis) is a ''Kreis'' (district) in the south of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Neighboring districts are Rheinisch-Bergischer Kreis, Oberbergischer Kreis, Altenkirchen (district), Altenkirchen, Neuwied ...

. The region covers an area of 3,839 km² with 3.13 million inhabitants (population density 815/km²). The city centres of Cologne and Bonn are 24 kilometres apart

as the crow flies __NOTOC__ The expression ''as the crow flies'' is an idiom for the most direct path between two points, rather similar to "in a beeline". This meaning is attested from the early 19th century, and appeared in Charles Dickens's 1838 novel ''Oliver ...

. At the outer city limits, there are only 8 kilometres between Cologne-Libur and Bonn-Geislar. The Cologne/Bonn Region was established by local governments within the Cologne Government Region in 1992, to promote common policies in regional and urban planning, traffic management, environment and investment. Among the most prominent co-operative projects are the Cologne/Bonn Airport, the

Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Sieg The Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Sieg (''Rhine-Sieg Transport Association''; VRS) is the public transport association covering the area of the Cologne/Bonn Region, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It was founded on 1 September 1987, and covers an area ...

and the former Bonn–Cologne Railway Company. Also the

Stadtbahn ' (; German for "city railway"; plural ') is a German word referring to various types of urban rail transport. One type of transport originated in the 19th century, firstly in Berlin and followed by Vienna, where rail routes were created that co ...

of both cities are connected, so there are light rail trains from

Cologne Stadtbahn The Cologne Stadtbahn is a light rail system in the German city of Cologne, including several surrounding cities of the Cologne Bonn Region (Bergisch Gladbach, Bonn, Bornheim, Brühl, Frechen, Hürth, Leverkusen-Schlebusch, Wesseling). The ...

in Bonn and the

Bonn Stadtbahn The Bonn Stadtbahn ('' en, city rail'') is a part of the local public transit system in Bonn and the surrounding Rhein-Sieg area, that also includes the Bonn Straßenbahn. Although with six actual Stadtbahn lines (as well as three tram lines) ...

in Cologne. The largest local banks, ''Sparkasse KölnBonn'' and ''Volksbank Köln Bonn'', operate in both cities. Both cities are directly connected by the

autobahn The (; German plural ) is the federal controlled-access highway system in Germany. The official German term is (abbreviated ''BAB''), which translates as 'federal motorway'. The literal meaning of the word is 'Federal Auto(mobile) Track' ...

A555. The Cologne/Bonn region lies within the larger

Rhine-Ruhr The Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan region (german: Metropolregion Rhein-Ruhr) is the largest metropolitan region in Germany, with over ten million inhabitants. A polycentric conurbation with several major urban concentrations, the region covers ...

region, and forms a counterbalance to the more integrated

Ruhr area The Ruhr ( ; german: Ruhrgebiet , also ''Ruhrpott'' ), also referred to as the Ruhr area, sometimes Ruhr district, Ruhr region, or Ruhr valley, is a polycentric urban area in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. With a population density of 2,800/km ...

, which also lies within the Rhine-Ruhr. Since 2008, studies have been undertaken to incorporate cities of the

Lower Rhine region The Lower Rhine region or Niederrhein is a region around the Lower Rhine section of the river Rhine in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany between approximately Oberhausen and Krefeld in the East and the Dutch border around Kleve in the We ...

(most notably the city of

Düsseldorf Düsseldorf ( , , ; often in English sources; Low Franconian and Ripuarian: ''Düsseldörp'' ; archaic nl, Dusseldorp ) is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in ...

) into the alliance, in order to form a ''Rhineland metropolitan region'' (Metropolregion Rheinland).

Larger Urban Zones

Eurostat's ''Urban Audit'' splits the Cologne/Bonn region into two

Larger Urban Zones The larger urban zone (LUZ), or functional urban area (FUA), is a measure of the population and expanse of metropolitan and surrounding areas which may or may not be exclusively urban. It consists of a city and its commuting zone outside it. The ...

(LUZ). These two Urban Zones do not cover the district of

. Population figures for 2012 File:Kölner Rhein.jpg,

File:Zepper-sunrise-over-the-niveous-city-of-bonn.jpg,

File:Bonn Kreuzbauten Post Tower.jpg, Bonn with Cologne's skyline File:Bayer AG in Leverkusen, Luftaufnahme.JPG,

References

External links

Region Köln/Bonn

Regional Marketing Cologne Bonn Ltd
Geography of Cologne Bonn Leverkusen Rhineland Metropolitan areas of Germany Regions of North Rhine-Westphalia {{Cologne-geo-stub

Larger Urban Zones

See also

References

External links