Tres Cantos

**Tres Cantos** is a tounship an municipality locatit in the autonomous commonty o Madrid, Spain, some 22&nbsp;km north o the caipital ceety, Madrid.

## History
Tres Cantos is a 'new commonty' or planned tounship, which wis first commissioned bi the dictatorship o Francisco Franco in 1971 tae be established on landwart laund cedit bi the ceety o Colmenar Viejo. Residential occupation began frae 1982, an in 1991 it wis incorporatit as a separate municipality, the newest in aw o Spain. Infrastructur development haes continued apace, wi a current (2005) 5-year development plan bi local govrenment authorities allouin for expansion o up tae 60,000 inhabitants.

## Geografie
Tres Cantos wis built on umwhile landwart land, aboot haufwey frae the northren ootskirts o suburban Madrid tae the Guadarrama muntain range, which are frequently snaw-cappit in winter. It lees in a slicht valley shapit wi twa eastwairds-flowin creeks, boondit tae the sooth bi a heicher plateau leadin tae Madrid, an tae the wast an north bi mair hilly terrain, which separates the aurie frae the wattershed o the Manzanares River. General elevation o the tounship is aroond 680 m, wi a heichest elevation athin the municipality's borders o 730 m. The terrain rises towards the fuithills o the Guadarrama range tae the north an northwast, reachin elevations in excess o 800 m athort the border in Colmenar Viejo. Athin the urban aurie the terrain is gently undulatin.

## Demographics

In 2004 the residential population o Tres Cantos wis 38,882 accordin tae Naitional Institute o Statistics (*Instituto Nacional de Estadística*, or INE) figurs; housomeivver later estimates put the figur at aroond 45,000. Population growthe haes been in decline syne the peak o the initial influx o residents in the early 1990s, housomeivver futur plans for expansion are designed tae catter for a eventual population o aroond 60,000.

A strikin featur o Tres Cantos' demographic profile is the lairge proportion o young profeesionals (agit 45 an unner) wi childer, compared tae Madrid an the naitional average. This population structur reflects the nucleus o those who left the croudit confines o Madrid tae settle in the new commonty o Tres Cantos in the 1980s an 1990s, resultin in a predominance o young, double-income an hame-awnin faimilies o 2 tae 3 childer. Some 40% o the toun's population are unner 20 (amaist double the naitional average), an less nor 6% are ower the age o 65 (considerably less nor hauf the naitional average). The birth rate is double the naitional average an aw.

Some 10% o the population are foreign-born (*extranjeros*), wi those frae Laitin American kintras representin ower hauf o these, an those frae ither European kintras a further 33%. Again, mony o the immigrant population are profeesionals employed bi multinaitional companies in fields such as technology, who hae settled in Spain efter first arrivin on wirk assignment, mony o whom are marriet tae Spainyie naitionals.

Eddicational accreditation amang Tres Cantos inhabitants is abuin the naitional average an aw, wi some 60% o prime income earners hauldin a tertiary qualification or heicher. Average income levels reflect these eddication levels an profeesional employment opportunities, wi ower 55% haein salaries in the upper-middle or heicher income range. Mony hoosehaulds hae dual-incomes. Approximately 15% o hoosehaulds are classifee'd as lawer-middle an law-income hoosehaulds.

An owerwhelmin majority o the employed wirk in the services sector, either in Madrid or in Tres Cantos itsel. A majority o wirkin residents regularly commute tae Madrid for wirk, wi anerly aboot a quairter o the wirkforce haein employment in Tres Cantos itsel. Those who remain ahint are jyned bi a daily influx o approximately 20,000 who commute frae Madrid an its environs tae Tres Cantos for wirk. Licht an middlin industries accoont for some 20% o employment in Tres Cantos, the construction sector providin a further 7.4%; a bare haundful (0.2%) are employed in agricultur.

## Economy an industry
Tres Cantos' main economic activity is derivit frae the existence o various heich-tech factories an heidquairters in designated zones, includin frae the pharmaceutical, aerospace an computin industries.

Approximately 20,000 employees frae ootside o Tres Cantos (predominanty Madrid) commute daily tae wirk in its industrial zones its "Technological Pairk," hame o cuttin-edge companies in the aerospace industry, such as GMV Innovating Solutions. Ither multinaitional corporations wi offices an/or production in Tres Cantos are: Lucent Technologies, BP Solar, BDF Nivea, Nokia Siemens Networks, Samsonite, Altair, Siemens, Dannon, GMV, an IFS. Maist recently, the lairgest cable provider in Spain, SOGECABLE, relocatit here. The heidquairters o baith the Real Automóvil Club de España an the Spainyie Metrology Centre are locatit in Tres Cantos.

## Sister ceeties
*Columbia, Maryland, Unitit States
*Cergy-Pontoise, Fraunce
*Nejapa, El Salvador

## Sports clubs
*U.D Tres Cantos Islas
*Galáctico Pegaso
*Tres Cantos C.D.F.
*Tien 21 Uicesa Tres Cantos (futsal club)
*CEA TEAM C.F.
*Club de Rugby Tres Cantos

## Notes an references

## Freemit airtins
* Offeecial wab page o the Tres Cantos municipal govrenment (in Spainyie) 
* detailed map o the municipal region
* Portal de información local de Tres Cantos