Introduction

The four chapters in Part III relate specifically to the theme of new towns. This topic has been selected to illustrate the theme of Learning from other countries because the concept of a new town is an example of a planning idea which has travelled the world. New town projects have been promoted in countries with very different regimes, at very different stages of economic and urban development, and of great cultural diversity. The following contributions illustrate the fact that projects with very widely ranging characteristics may be given the title ‘new town’. In spite of this variety, the concept is a meaningful one in a great many countries, representing the whole range of economic circumstances from the developed countries of both East and West Europe to the Third World.