was also a city-stage in the Tour de France 2013: the arrival point of the first stage from Porto-Vecchio and starting point for the second to Ajaccio. Bastia is currently the headquarters for the French round of the FIA World Rally Championship. Town planning Bastia is primarily a port city so the sea has a predominant place in the spatial organization of the city. Nowadays Bastia has three different ports. The Old Port: located in a narrow cove that offers good protection against the Mediterranean weather. It was therefore at the heart of the initial development of the city. Today it still is home to many yachts and fishing boats but it is not so economically vital for the city than the other modern ports, although its tourism and aesthetic appeal makes it an almost official emblem of Bastia. Many bar-cafes and restaurants have opened on its quays whose streets are pedestrian access only in the summer. The Commercial Port: a little north of the Old Port, it is the major economic asset of the city. This is especially true in the summer period when thousands of arrivals and departures of passengers and vehicles can sometimes cause long traffic jams along Route nationale N193 despite the existence of a tunnel under the Old Port. Opposite the commercial port is the vast Place Saint Nicolas which is the heart of the city. The Toga Marina: north of the commercial port partly in Ville-di-Pietrabugno is occupied by many sailboats and yachts. There are also several bars, restaurants and nightclubs on its quays. The city centre and outlying urban areas Today the city centre consists mainly of the citadel (also called Terra Nova), the Palace of the Governors, the Old Port with its surrounding neighbourhood and the market place, and finally all the buildings along the Paoli Boulevard – the main commercial street of the city which stretches from the courthouse to the Avenue Maréchal Sebastiani. In recent decades Bastia and its region have had strong demographic growth which has now grown beyond the municipal boundaries. Bastia has several hamlets and districts that are, from north to south: Cardo: a village northeast of the city, Cardo was one of the first inhabited places in the area. Le Fango: an area which has developed recently on the mountainside. It includes in particular the prefecture of Haute-Corse, Bastia railway station, and the Lycée Giocante de