AN OBSERVATION OF THE TERRITORIAL DISPERSION OF COVID-19 IN THE VALES REGION AND IN THE MEDIUM-SIZED CITIES OF SANTA CRUZ DO SUL AND LAJEADO IN THE STATE OF RIO GRANDE DO SUL (RS), BRAZIL

Abstract

This article analyzes the spatial pattern of the dynamics of territorial dispersion of COVID-19 in the territory of the Vales (RS) region, identifying possible relations of such dynamics with the structure and functioning of the regional urban network, with the economic structure and the territorial division of regional labor, and with intraregional spatial interactions led by the medium-sized cities of Lajeado and Santa Cruz do Sul, the main economic and service centers of the Vales region. This article also analyzes the particularities, similarities, and specificities of the dynamics of the socio-spatial dispersion of the virus in the urban space of the medium-sized cities of Santa Cruz do Sul and Lajeado, correlating such dynamics with the sociodemographic and infrastructural characteristics existing in these two urban spaces.