Changing commuting patterns in rural metro-adjacent regions: the case of Castilla-La Mancha in the context of Madrid, Spain

Changing commuting patterns in rural metro-adjacent regions: the case of Castilla-La Mancha in the context of Madrid, Spain. Regional Studies. This paper describes changing commuting patterns within rural regions gradually integrated into metropolitan dynamics and recently reconfigured by state rescaling processes. It focuses on Castilla-La Mancha (Spain), a rural region under Madrilenian influence, between 1981 and 2011. The empirical results show that these regions are (1) becoming hybrid territories, changing from predominantly rural territories into areas that exhibit mixed rural–metropolitan behaviours; (2) increasingly influenced by metropolitan overflows, which are predominantly integrating non-centrality municipalities; (3) transforming their urban spatial structures from leaderless models to incipient polycentric ones; and (4) experiencing a commuting reconfiguration towards multidirectional patterns.