Journal of Tourism, Hospitality and Sports - An Open Access International Journal Vol.1 2013 55 Spatial Variation and Determinants of Interaction among Urban Centres in Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria Dr. Ekong E. Daniel Faculty of Social and Management Sciences, Akwa Ibom State University, Obio Akpa Campus P.M.B. 1167, Uyo, Akwa Ibom State,Nigeria ekongdan@yahoo.com Dr. Victor Umoren Department of Urban and Regional Planning, Faculty of Environmental Studies University of Uyo, P.M.B. 1017, Uyo, Akwa Ibom State,Nigeria Aknowledgements We appreciate the contributions of Professor P. A. Akpan of the Department of Geography & Regional Planning, University of Uyo, Nigeria to the success of this work. We thank the academic and non academic staff of the faculty of Social & Management Sciences, Akwa Ibom State University, Nigeria for their solidarity. Our thanks also go to Mrs. Glory U. Akpan, a public health officer with Okonee Nursery School, Uyo Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria for her financial support. Abstract The aim of the study was to determine the volume of interaction among the urban centers in the study region and to assess the relationship between the observed volume of interaction and the expected volume of interaction in the study region.. Six urban centres were selected from the thirty-one urban centres in the study region using random number table. Data collection was by travel survey conducted from Monday – Saturday simultaneously in the six urban public motor parks between the hours of 7 – 9 am, 12 – 2 pm and 4 – 6 pm. The Chi-square technique ‘goodness of fit’ test was used to analyze the difference between the observed volume of interaction and the expected volume of interaction among the urban centers. The study revealed a significant difference between the observed volume of interaction and the expected volume of interaction in the region. The conclusion was that the determinants of inter – urban interaction in Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria are not just population and distance as postulated in the gravity model, other socio-economic variables such as number of industries, number of tertiary educational institutions, number of major markets, number of tourism sites and number of hospitals also contribute to inter-urban interaction in the region. This is a contribution to modifying gravity model for wider use. These findings will assist in the urban transportation planning of the region. Keywords: Spatial variation, inter-urban interaction, gravity model, Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria Introduction In recent years, there has been noticeable increase in the demand for inter-city work, business and other trips stimulating interaction among the urban centers in the developing countries (Oyesiku, 1995). The current trend has brought to the fore the need for a better understanding of the travel pattern and behavior among urban centers and regions. The past one and half decades have witnessed a phenomenal increase in the demand for inter-city passenger travels, public and private transport services in Nigeria (Daniel & Ituen, 2013). This has been due to increasing personal income, improved transport infrastructure and availability of vehicles for long distance travels in the market (Oyesiku, 1995). In Nigeria for example the demand for inter-city and regional trips in public transport rose from 41.5 % in 1986 to about 65% in 1990 (Daniel & Ituen, 2013). This increase poses additional challenges to the transport planners. Basic to any planning is an understanding of materials (Crieghton, 1972). Materials are viewed here in a broad sense. The engineer for example, must understand not only the strength of the materials used in a bridge, but also the load that will be imposed on that bridge. The materials of an urban transportation planner include not only the physical ways and vehicles within which people and goods move about but also the trips themselves and activities which generate the trips (Daniel, 2002). Long-range plan for coordinated transportation systems to serve metropolitan areas cannot be developed based on intuition and judgment, but are based on rigorous processes, including computer tests, which demonstrate that the recommended plan maximizes performance in relation to an accepted goal The Study Location The study was conducted in Akwa Ibom State. Akwa Ibom State is one of the thirty-six States in Federal Republic of Nigeria. It was created on 23 rd September, 1987 (Daniel and Akpan, 2006). There are 31 Local Government Areas including Uyo the State Capital. The State is strategically located at the Southeastern corner of Nigeria between latitudes 4 o 30 1 and 5 o 33 1 North and longitudes 7 o 30 1 and 8 o 25 1 East (see Fig.1). By the 2001 census Akwa Ibom State recorded a total population of 3,920,208 persons (Inyang, 2010).