Energy and urban form. The growth of European cities on the basis of night-time brightness

2017 ◽  
Vol 61 ◽  
pp. 103-112 ◽  
Author(s):  
Oriol Nel·lo ◽  
Joan López ◽  
Jordi Martín ◽  
Joan Checa
Keyword(s):  
Urban Form ◽  
Night Time ◽  
European Cities

scholarly journals Urban Morphological Controls on Surface Thermal Dynamics: A Comparative Assessment of Major European Cities with a Focus on Athens, Greece

Climate ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (11) ◽  
pp. 131
Author(s):  
Ilias Agathangelidis ◽  
Constantinos Cartalis ◽  
Mat Santamouris
Keyword(s):  
Surface Temperature ◽  
Land Surface ◽  
Urban Form ◽  
Negative Relationship ◽  
Urban Surface ◽  
Thermal Dynamics ◽  
Near Surface ◽  
Surface Parameters ◽  
European Cities ◽  
The City

Variations in urban form lead to the development of distinctive intra-urban surface thermal patterns. Previous assessment of the relation between urban structure and satellite-based Land Surface Temperature (LST) has generally been limited to single-city cases. Here, examining 25 European cities (June–August 2017), we estimated the statistical association between surface parameters—the impervious fraction (λimp), the building fraction (λb), and the building height (H)—and the neighborhood scale (1000 × 1000 m) LST variations, as captured by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) sensor. Correlation analysis, multiple linear regression, and spatial regression were used. As expected, λimp had a consistent positive influence on LSTs. In contrast, the relation of LST with λb and H was generally weaker or negative in the daytime, whereas at night it shifted to a robust positive effect. In particular, daytime LSTs of densely built, high-rise European districts tended to have lower values. This was especially the case for the city of Athens, Greece, where a more focused analysis was conducted, using further surface parameters and the Local Climate Zone (LCZ) scheme. For the urban core of the city, the canyon aspect ratio H/W had a statistically significant (p <0.01) negative relationship with LST by day (Spearman’s rho = −0.68) and positive during nighttime (rho = 0.45). The prevailing intra-urban surface thermal variability in Athens was well reproduced by a 5-day numerical experiment using the meteorological Weather Research and Forecasting Model (WRF) model and a modified urban parameterization scheme. Although the simulation resulted in some systematic errors, the overall accuracy of the model was adequate, regarding the surface temperature (RMSE = 2.4 K) and the near-surface air temperature (RMSE = 1.7 K) estimations.

scholarly journals Smooth integration of transport infrastructure into urban space

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 1379
Author(s):  
Anastasios Mouratidis
Keyword(s):  
Urban Space ◽  
Urban Form ◽  
Technological Development ◽  
Traffic Monitoring ◽  
Urban Transport ◽  
Transport Infrastructure ◽  
Transport Systems ◽  
European Cities ◽  
Motorized Transport ◽  
New Infrastructure

Municipal authorities in industrialized and in developing countries face unceasingly the issues of congestion, insufficiency of transport means capacity, poor operability of transport systems and a growing demand for reliable and effective urban transport. While the expansion of infrastructure is generally considered as an undesirable option, in specific cases, when short links or ring roads are missing, new infrastructure projects may provide beneficial solutions. The upgrading and renewal of existing networks is always a challenge to the development of a modern city and the welfare of citizens. Central governance and management of transport systems, the establishment of smart and digital infrastructure, advanced surveillance and traffic monitoring, and intra-city energy-harvesting policy are some of the steps to be taken during the transition to a green and sustainable urban future.Municipal authorities have also to consider other options and strategies to create a citizen-friendly setting for mobility: diminish the need for trips (digitalization of services, e-commerce, etc.), shift from private to public transport and transform the urban form to promote non-motorized transport in favor of the natural environment and public health. A citizen-friendly policy based on the anticipation of future needs and technological development seems to be a requisite for European cities searching for a smooth integration of their networks into urban space.

scholarly journals Structure of Plot Systems and Economic Activity in Cities: Linking Plot Types to Retail and Food Services in London, Amsterdam and Stockholm

Urban Science ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 66 ◽  
Author(s):  
Evgeniya Bobkova ◽  
Lars Marcus ◽  
Meta Berghauser Pont ◽  
Ioanna Stavroulaki ◽  
David Bolin
Keyword(s):  
Economic Performance ◽  
Economic Activity ◽  
Urban Form ◽  
Empirical Support ◽  
Food Services ◽  
Economic Data ◽  
Spatial Form ◽  
European Cities ◽  
Regular Shape ◽  
Initial Hypothesis

Plot systems (also referred to as “property”, “parcel”, or “lot”) are generally recognised as the organisational framework of urban form that contributes to the economic performance of cities. However, studies that link the spatial form of plots to economic data are limited. The paper builds on the theory of Webster and Lai, which argues that the process of urbanisation is aligned with increased subdivision of property rights (increased division of land into plots, for example) due to the process of economic specialisation that is typical of cities. The aim of the paper is to test this theory by analysing whether there is a correlation between: (a) the shape and structure of plot systems, which are classified as types based on three plot metrics (size, compactness, and frontage index) and b) economic activity, measured as the concentration of retail and food activities per plot. The paper will use statistical analysis to relate plot types to economic activity in three European cities (London, Amsterdam, and Stockholm). The results provide empirical support for our initial hypothesis and Webster and Lai’s theory, which states that plots of smaller size, more regular shape, and smaller frontage generally correspond to a higher concentration of economic activity in cities.

Comparing the urban form of South European cities using fractal dimensions

2018 ◽  
Vol 47 (7) ◽  
pp. 1149-1166 ◽  
Author(s):  
Apostolos Lagarias ◽  
Poulicos Prastacos
Keyword(s):  
Urban Development ◽  
Urban Form ◽  
Fractal Dimensions ◽  
Binary Images ◽  
Soil Sealing ◽  
European Cities ◽  
Relative Ranking ◽  
Highly Correlated ◽  
D Values ◽  
Mediterranean France

This paper compares built-up patterns and the urban form of South European cities using fractal dimensions. Fractal dimensions (D) are estimated in two different ways: (a) using binary images with information only on the built-up and non-built-up areas and (b) using grayscale images that represent the different built-up densities. The Urban Atlas and the Imperviousness-Soil Sealing Degree datasets are used to compute fractal dimensions for the 14 cities in Spain, Portugal, Italy, Greece and the Mediterranean France with a population exceeding one million. The results indicate that differences in urban form are reflected in the fractal dimensions. Fractal dimensions are higher in cities characterized by a relatively continuous and homogeneous sprawl than in cities with elongated urban form or discontinuous development in periurban areas. In Spanish cities urban development is fragmented with clustered and contrasted patterns and this leads to lower fractal dimensions. In Italian and Portuguese cities, development follows relatively homogeneous patterns and D values are significantly higher. Other key findings of the research indicate that: (a) grayscale fractal dimensions are lower than the corresponding binary ones, nonetheless the relative ranking of the cities according to D remains about the same regardless of the method used and (b) fractal dimensions are highly correlated to the average built-up density.

scholarly journals Uncovering temporal changes in Europe’s population density patterns using a data fusion approach

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Filipe Batista e Silva ◽  
Sérgio Freire ◽  
Marcello Schiavina ◽  
Konštantín Rosina ◽  
Mario Alberto Marín-Herrera ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Population Density ◽  
Human Mobility ◽  
Temporal Distribution ◽  
Disaster Risk ◽  
Density Structure ◽  
Night Time ◽  
European Cities ◽  
Spatio Temporal ◽  
Official Sources ◽  
Fusion Approach

Abstract The knowledge of the spatial and temporal distribution of human population is vital for the study of cities, disaster risk management or planning of infrastructure. However, information on the distribution of population is often based on place-of-residence statistics from official sources, thus ignoring the changing population densities resulting from human mobility. Existing assessments of spatio-temporal population are limited in their detail and geographical coverage, and the promising mobile-phone records are hindered by issues concerning availability and consistency. Here, we present a multi-layered dasymetric approach that combines official statistics with geospatial data from emerging sources to produce and validate a European Union-wide dataset of population grids taking into account intraday and monthly population variations at 1 km2 resolution. The results reproduce and systematically quantify known insights concerning the spatio-temporal population density structure of large European cities, whose daytime population we estimate to be, on average, 1.9 times higher than night time in city centers.

scholarly journals Changes in night-time distribution of goods to the city centres as a tool to meet the requirements of the EU white paper on transport

2017 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 11-15
Author(s):  
Jozef Gnap ◽  
◽  
Dominika Beňová ◽  
Radovan Slávik ◽  
Grzegorz Dydkowski
Keyword(s):  
Traffic Accidents ◽  
White Paper ◽  
City Centre ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Night Time ◽  
Advantages And Disadvantages ◽  
European Cities ◽  
The City ◽  
City Centres ◽  
The Eu

The report focuses on assessing the advantages and disadvantages of night distribution in selected European cities. The first chapter is focused on projects focused on night distribution of goods in the city centre. The second chapter deals with a more detailed analyses of night distribution in some countries of the European Union. It shows concrete example, a solution for night distribution, which can be applied to our Slovak cities. Even in Slovakia, it has to deal with the issue in view of the constantly increase the number and the duration of traffic accidents not only in Bratislava, but also in all regional cities.

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