Research

27 pages, 870 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Internet in the Middle of Nowhere: Performance of Geoportals in Rural Areas According to Core Web Vitals

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Karol Król

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Wojciech Sroka

ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2023, 12(12), 484; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi12120484 - 29 Nov 2023

Viewed by 328

Abstract

The spatial planning system in Poland is undergoing a fundamental reform. It emphasises the digital representation of spatial data. Low performance of geoportals, no Internet access, or poor connectivity can contribute to the exclusion from the spatial planning process, and consequently to the [...] Read more.

The spatial planning system in Poland is undergoing a fundamental reform. It emphasises the digital representation of spatial data. Low performance of geoportals, no Internet access, or poor connectivity can contribute to the exclusion from the spatial planning process, and consequently to the exclusion from a specific part of public life. Considering these developments, the present study seems relevant by pointing out the issue with geoportal performance and availability of quality Internet in rural areas. The primary contribution of the article is (1) results of performance measurements for selected geoportals; (2) presentation of measuring tools and performance indices combined with methods for ad-hoc performance measuring; and (3) presentation of potential actions to improve geoportal performance on the device with which it is used. The article offers case studies where the performance of selected geoportals was tested in rural mountainous areas with limited Internet access. Five geoportals were tested with PageSpeed Insights (PSI), WebPageTest, GTmetrix, Pingdom, and GiftOfSpeed. Core Web Vitals indices were analysed: Largest Contentful Paint (LCP), First Input Delay (FID), Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS), and First Contentful Paint (FCP). The author verified values of the Speed Index and Fully Loaded Time along with other performance indices, like GTmetrix Structure. The study failed to provide unambiguous evidence that radio link users in rural areas could experience problems with geoportal performance, although the results seem to suggest it indirectly. PSI Lab Data and Field Data tests revealed a relatively low performance of the geoportals. The Performance index remained below 50 in most cases, which is ‘Poor’ according to the PSI scale. The fully loaded time exceeded 10 s for all the geoportals and 20 s in some cases (Lab Data). It means that the perceived performance of the tested geoportals on a radio link in rural areas is most probably even lower. The case studies demonstrated further that the user has limited possibilities to speed up map applications. It is possible to slightly improve the geoportal experience through the optimisation of the device locally, but the responsibility to ensure geoportal performance is mainly the publisher’s. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Geographical Information System in Urban Design, Management or Evaluation)

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17 pages, 40798 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A GIS-Based Damage Evaluation Method for Explosives Road Transportation Accidents

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ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2023, 12(12), 470; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi12120470 - 21 Nov 2023

Viewed by 414

Abstract

The road transportation of explosives is highly concerning due to its substantial impact on social safety. For the safety management of explosive transportation, e.g., transport route planning and emergency rescue, explosion consequence evaluation is of paramount importance. The consequence evaluation of explosion accidents [...] Read more.

The road transportation of explosives is highly concerning due to its substantial impact on social safety. For the safety management of explosive transportation, e.g., transport route planning and emergency rescue, explosion consequence evaluation is of paramount importance. The consequence evaluation of explosion accidents is affected by many factors, especially spatial features, such as the location of transport vehicles, the distribution of buildings, and the presence of individuals around the road, etc. However, there is still a lack of quantification methods for building damage evaluation, human casualty evaluation that considers real-time population density, and efficient interactive damage evaluation methods. In this paper, we formalize three typical scenarios of damage evaluation for explosive road transportation accidents, i.e., explosion point-based, road segment-based, and route-based damage evaluation. For each scenario, we propose a Height-aware Hierarchical Building Damage (HHBD) model and a Shelter-aware Human Casualty (SHC) model for building damage evaluation and human casualty evaluation, respectively. We also develop a GIS-based interactive visualization platform that integrates multi-source geospatial data and that enables efficient geospatial computation. In addition, a case study of liquefied natural gas (LNG) transportation in Wuhan is demonstrated in order to verify the effectiveness and efficiency of the proposed system. The research results can support the decision-making process of explosive transportation safety warnings and emergency rescue. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Geographical Information System in Urban Design, Management or Evaluation)

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28 pages, 3338 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Evaluation and Spatiotemporal Differentiation of Cultural Tourism Development Potential: The Case of the Middle and Lower Reaches of the Yellow River

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ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2023, 12(11), 461; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi12110461 - 12 Nov 2023

Viewed by 538

Abstract

Cultural tourism development potential (CTDP) is the future value and supporting force of the environmental value, economic and social efficiency, innovation ability and supporting system of cultural tourism. At present, there are few relevant studies on CTDP, but the research results on the [...] Read more.

Cultural tourism development potential (CTDP) is the future value and supporting force of the environmental value, economic and social efficiency, innovation ability and supporting system of cultural tourism. At present, there are few relevant studies on CTDP, but the research results on the tourism development potential of cultural heritage are relatively rich, and the existing evaluation methods lack comprehensiveness, dynamics and visualization. Based on systems theory and sustainable development theory, this article attempts to innovate and collect time series data through the entropy method, multi-index comprehensive evaluation method, spatial kernel density estimation method, and centroid transferring model. The temporal and spatial evolution characteristics and the CTDP of 43 cities in the middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River are examined and analyzed. It is found that the CTDP in the middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River is divided into five levels; the overall potential intensity of the research area is small and has significant spatial differences; influenced by the time factor, the interaction and spatial correlation of within the research area are significant; the development of regional cultural tourism has strong regional dependence in the short range. The center of potential gradually moves to the geometric center. This study is significant for promoting the sustainable development of economic tourism in cradles of world civilization. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Geographical Information System in Urban Design, Management or Evaluation)

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19 pages, 16455 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Spatial and Temporal Evolution of the Characteristics of Spatially Aggregated Elements in an Urban Area: A Case Study of Wuhan, China

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ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2023, 12(11), 448; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi12110448 - 31 Oct 2023

Viewed by 648

Abstract

Urban spatial elements present agglomeration and dispersion geographic processes in the urban development. Identifying the characteristics of their distribution changes and accurately capturing the evolution of the urban spatial structure is of great significance to urban construction and management. This study takes Wuhan [...] Read more.

Urban spatial elements present agglomeration and dispersion geographic processes in the urban development. Identifying the characteristics of their distribution changes and accurately capturing the evolution of the urban spatial structure is of great significance to urban construction and management. This study takes Wuhan as a case study and focuses on the spatial agglomeration distribution of urban elements. Point of Interest (POI) data from 2017 to 2021 were collected, and the Block2Vec model was employed to extract the comprehensive geographic information from various elements within the traffic analysis zones (TAZs). Subsequently, identification and division were carried out to access the level of urban spatial element agglomeration. Finally, the spatial–temporal evolution characteristics of urban aggregated elements in the Wuhan metropolitan development area over five years were compared and analyzed. The results indicate the following: (1) urban elements present an obvious circle structure in their spatial agglomeration, with distinct differences observed among different element types; (2) from 2017 to 2021, the Wuhan urban development zone experienced obvious expansion in urban space; (3) increased agglomeration of spatial elements mainly occurred in the surrounding areas of the city, while some areas in the city center displayed weaker element agglomeration and a reduction in various service facilities. The results demonstrate that the method used in this study could effectively identify the spatial agglomeration distribution of urban elements, as well as accurately distinguishing regions with distinct development characteristics. This approach could provide robust support for optimizing land use and urban spatial planning. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Geographical Information System in Urban Design, Management or Evaluation)

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23 pages, 13304 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Identifying Spatiotemporal Patterns of Multiscale Connectivity in the Flow Space of Urban Agglomeration in the Yellow River Basin

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ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2023, 12(11), 447; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi12110447 - 30 Oct 2023

Viewed by 646

Abstract

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the rise of global sustainability science have led to the increasing recognition of basins as the key natural geographical units for human–land system coupling and spatial coordinated development. The effective measurement of spatiotemporal patterns of [...] Read more.

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the rise of global sustainability science have led to the increasing recognition of basins as the key natural geographical units for human–land system coupling and spatial coordinated development. The effective measurement of spatiotemporal patterns of urban connectivity within a basin has become a key issue in achieving basin-related SDGs. Meanwhile, China has been actively working toward co-ordinated regional development through in-depth implementation of the Yellow River Basin’s ecological protection and high-quality development. Urban connectivity has been trending in urban planning, and significant progress has been made on different scales according to the flow space theory. Nevertheless, few studies have been conducted on the multiscale spatiotemporal patterns of urban agglomeration connectivity. In this study, the urban network in the Yellow River Basin was constructed using Tencent population migration data from 2015 and 2019. It was then divided into seven distinct communities to enable analysis at both the basin and community scales. Centrality, symmetry, and polycentricity indices were employed, and the multiscale spatiotemporal patterns of urban agglomerations in the Yellow River Basin were identified using community detection, complex networks, and the migration kaleidoscope method. Community connectivity was notably concentrated at the basin scale with a centripetal pattern and spatial heterogeneity. Additionally, there was a symmetrical and co-ordinated relationship in population migration between the eastern and western regions of the basin, as well as between the internal and external parts of the basin. At the community scale, there was significant variation in the extent of central agglomeration among different communities, with few instances of similar-level, long-distance, and interregional bilateral links. The utilization of multiscale spatiotemporal patterns has the potential to enhance the comprehension of economic cooperation between various cities and urban agglomerations. This understanding can aid decision-makers in formulating sustainable development policies that foster the spatial integration of the basin. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Geographical Information System in Urban Design, Management or Evaluation)

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38 pages, 31524 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Comparative Hotspot Analysis of Urban Living Environments and Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) Strategies: A Case Study of Beijing and Xi’an

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Yuchen Dai

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Shouhang Du

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Hanqing Min

ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2023, 12(11), 446; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi12110446 - 30 Oct 2023

Viewed by 688

Abstract

The quality of urban living environments has become a focal point for local governments and citizens. By conducting a thorough analysis of the human settlement environment, the study can not only gain an intuitive insight into the quality of life of residents but [...] Read more.

The quality of urban living environments has become a focal point for local governments and citizens. By conducting a thorough analysis of the human settlement environment, the study can not only gain an intuitive insight into the quality of life of residents but also propose forward-thinking and sustainable suggestions for areas of improvement. This study optimizes and analyzes open platform data closely related to residents and assesses the suitability of different areas for living from diverse perspectives and methodologies. This study has chosen Beijing and Xi’an as the primary case studies. The local living environment is categorized into residential, living, recreational environment, transportation convenience, and safety. Our evaluation combines subjective and objective analysis methods and considers hotspot and cold spot analyses. This study employs the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) as a subjective analysis method and the entropy method for objective analysis. By integrating both methods, it assesses the living environment conditions of Beijing and Xi’an. Furthermore, using GIS software, hotspot analysis is conducted for both cities, identifying areas of high and low quality. Detailed analysis is subsequently carried out for the low-quality clusters. Ultimately, this study, grounded in the theory of Transit-Oriented Development (TOD), presents recommendations for sustainable development aimed at representative rural towns and streets. City centers in Beijing and Xi’an have high-quality environments, while the outskirts show declining quality. Xi’an has uneven resource distribution, while Beijing is more balanced, with hotspot analyses indicating specific high- and low-quality cluster locations in both cities. These disparities and characteristics of the low-quality clusters offer insights for future urban development. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Geographical Information System in Urban Design, Management or Evaluation)

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25 pages, 9203 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Observed Equity and Driving Factors of Automated External Defibrillators: A Case Study Using WeChat Applet Data

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ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2023, 12(11), 444; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi12110444 - 30 Oct 2023

Viewed by 635

Abstract

Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) causes a high mortality rate each year, which is a threat to human well-being and health. An automated external defibrillator (AED) is an effective device for heart attack-related diseases and is a panacea to save OHCA. Most relevant literature [...] Read more.

Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) causes a high mortality rate each year, which is a threat to human well-being and health. An automated external defibrillator (AED) is an effective device for heart attack-related diseases and is a panacea to save OHCA. Most relevant literature focuses on the spatial distribution, accessibility, and configuration optimization of AED devices, which all belong to the characteristics of the spatial distribution of AED devices. Still, there is a lack of discussion on related potential influencing factors. In addition, analysis of AED facilities involving multiple city comparisons is less considered. In this study, data on AED facilities in two major cities in China were obtained through the WeChat applet. Then, the AED equity at the city and block scales and its socioeconomic factors were analyzed using the Gini coefficient, Lorenz curve, and optimal parameters-based geo-graphical detector (OPGD) model. Results show that the number of AEDs in Shenzhen was about eight-times that of in Guangzhou. The distribution of AEDs in Shenzhen was more equitable with a global Gini of 0.347, higher than that in Guangzhou with a global Gini of 0.504. As for the determinants of AED equity, residential density was the most significant determinant in both Guangzhou and Shenzhen from the perspective of individual effects on AED equity. Differently, due to the aging population in Guangzhou, the proportion of the elderly in blocks was influential to local AED equity. The local economic development level was crucial to local AED equity in Shenzhen. The results of the interaction detector model illustrate that relatively equitable AED distributions were found in the high-density residential areas with a balance of employment and housing, high-aging residential areas, and high-mobility residential areas in Guangzhou. The area with a high level of local economic development, dense population, and large mobility was the area with a relatively equitable distribution of AEDs in Shenzhen. The results of this paper are conducive to understanding the equity of AEDs and its socio-economic determinants, providing scientific reference for the optimization and management of AEDs. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Geographical Information System in Urban Design, Management or Evaluation)

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19 pages, 1379 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Evaluation of the Resilience of the Catering Industry in Hong Kong before and after the COVID-19 Outbreak Based on Point-of-Interest Data

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ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2023, 12(11), 443; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi12110443 - 27 Oct 2023

Viewed by 616

Abstract

COVID-19 has caused a serious economic shock which challenges the resilience of businesses around the world. Understanding the spatial distribution pattern of business resilience, as well as identifying factors that promote business resilience, is crucial to economic recovery. Most existing studies mainly analyze [...] Read more.

COVID-19 has caused a serious economic shock which challenges the resilience of businesses around the world. Understanding the spatial distribution pattern of business resilience, as well as identifying factors that promote business resilience, is crucial to economic recovery. Most existing studies mainly analyze one side of the concept of resilience, such as how businesses closed, expanded, and innovated, while no studies take all the characteristics of resilience into account and analyze them from a geographical view. To fill this gap, this study first relates the method of calculating stability in ecology to geography, and proposes a point of interest (POI)-based index to evaluate an industry’s resilience in a city. Then, with the catering industry in Hong Kong as an example, the spatial distribution of resilience in June 2020 and December 2020 is investigated using the local indicators of spatial association (LISA) approach. An ordinary least squares (OLS) regression model is adopted to identify impactful factors on resilience. The results reveal that the resilience of restaurants is quite stable in local central areas, but areas near the checking points at Shenzhen in mainland China are severely affected. Most traditional location factors had the benefit of stabilization, while hospitals had negative responses. The presented analysis framework is possible to be easily generalized to other industries or cities. The overall result of the study provides a spatial understanding which would be essential as a reference for future urban planning regarding post-pandemic recovery. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Geographical Information System in Urban Design, Management or Evaluation)

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25 pages, 11815 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Revealing the Spatio-Temporal Heterogeneity of the Association between the Built Environment and Urban Vitality in Shenzhen

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Zhitao Li

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Guanwei Zhao

ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2023, 12(10), 433; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi12100433 - 22 Oct 2023

Viewed by 886

Abstract

Sensing urban vitality is a useful method for understanding urban development. However, the spatio-temporal characteristics of the association between the built environment and urban vitality in Shenzhen, the youngest mega-city in China, have not yet been explored. In this paper, we examined the [...] Read more.

Sensing urban vitality is a useful method for understanding urban development. However, the spatio-temporal characteristics of the association between the built environment and urban vitality in Shenzhen, the youngest mega-city in China, have not yet been explored. In this paper, we examined the effects of built environment indicators on urban vitality by using spatial regression models and multi-source geospatial data. The main research findings were as follows. Firstly, urban vitality displayed a consistent high–low pattern during both weekdays and weekends. Differences in the distribution of urban vitality with time between weekdays and weekends were more significant. Secondly, the effects of various built environment indicators on urban vitality exhibited significant temporal disparities. Within a day, population density, building density, bus station density, and distance to metro stations all exhibited positive effects, while distance to the central business district (CBD) exhibited negative effects, with pronounced diurnal differences. Moreover, the effects of road network density and functional mix on urban vitality were both positive and negative throughout the day. Thirdly, besides population density and building density, road network density, functional mix, bus stop density, and distance from metro stations exhibited positive and negative disparities within the study area. Overall, distance to the CBD had a negative effect on urban vitality. This concludes that planning for urban vitality should consider the spatio-temporal heterogeneity of the association between the built environment and urban vitality. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Geographical Information System in Urban Design, Management or Evaluation)

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18 pages, 5031 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Analyses of Land Use and Prevention in High-Density Main Urban Areas under the Constraint of Karst Ground Subsidence: Study of Wuhan City, China

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ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2023, 12(10), 425; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi12100425 - 16 Oct 2023

Viewed by 654

Abstract

The development and utilization of land in the main urban area have significantly impacted the stability of the regional geological environment through various means, such as increased load and subway construction, primarily manifested as rock and soil mass deformation leading to geological hazards. [...] Read more.

The development and utilization of land in the main urban area have significantly impacted the stability of the regional geological environment through various means, such as increased load and subway construction, primarily manifested as rock and soil mass deformation leading to geological hazards. Therefore, it is worth exploring how to reduce the occurrence of karst ground subsidence (KGS) through reasonable land development and control measures in the main urban areas with large-scale developments of buried karst formations. This study focuses on the main urban area of Wuhan City. An evaluation model for KGS was constructed using the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and comprehensive index evaluation method by analyzing the geological conditions that affect KGS. The susceptibility zoning of KGS was obtained with GIS spatial analysis technology. The results show that the susceptible areas can be divided into extreme, high, medium, and weak susceptibility, accounting for 4.93%, 15.30%, 33.21%, and 46.56%, respectively, which are consistent with the distribution density of past KSGs. Furthermore, by selecting the subway construction as a human activity type, it indirectly discusses the influence of land development intensity on KGS. The results show that past KSGs are mainly concentrated in areas with high engineering construction density and significant land development intensity. Based on the above, strategies for regional land development and prevention and control of KGSs are proposed. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Geographical Information System in Urban Design, Management or Evaluation)

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19 pages, 15347 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A Knowledge-Guided Fusion Visualisation Method of Digital Twin Scenes for Mountain Highways

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ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2023, 12(10), 424; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi12100424 - 15 Oct 2023

Viewed by 1092

Abstract

Informatization is an important trend in the field of mountain highway management, and the digital twin is an effective way to promote mountain highway information management due to the complex and diverse terrain of mountainous areas, the high complexity of mountainous road scene [...] Read more.

Informatization is an important trend in the field of mountain highway management, and the digital twin is an effective way to promote mountain highway information management due to the complex and diverse terrain of mountainous areas, the high complexity of mountainous road scene modeling and low visualisation efficiency. It is challenging to construct the digital twin scenarios efficiently for mountain highways. To solve this problem, this article proposes a knowledge-guided fusion expression method for digital twin scenes of mountain highways. First, we explore the expression features and interrelationships of mountain highway scenes to establish the knowledge graph of mountain highway scenes. Second, by utilizing scene knowledge to construct spatial semantic constraint rules, we achieve efficient fusion modeling of basic geographic scenes and dynamic and static ancillary facilities, thereby reducing the complexity of scene modeling. Finally, a multi-level visualisation publishing scheme is established to improve the efficiency of scene visualisation. On this basis, a prototype system is developed, and case experimental analysis is conducted to validate the research. The results of the experiment indicate that the suggested method can accomplish the fusion modelling of mountain highway scenes through knowledge guidance and semantic constraints. Moreover, the construction time for the model fusion is less than 5.7 ms; meanwhile, the dynamic drawing efficiency of the scene is maintained above 60 FPS. Thus, the construction of twinned scenes can be achieved quickly and efficiently, the effect of replicating reality with virtuality is accomplished, and the informatisation management capacity of mountain highways is enhanced. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Geographical Information System in Urban Design, Management or Evaluation)

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18 pages, 4124 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Spatiotemporal Pattern Evolution and Driving Force of Tourism Information Flow in the Chengdu–Chongqing City Cluster

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ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2023, 12(10), 414; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi12100414 - 10 Oct 2023

Viewed by 821

Abstract

In recent years, the tourism industry has developed rapidly. However, traditional tourism information has the disadvantages of slow response speed and limited information content, which cannot reflect the evolution trend of spatial and temporal patterns of tourism information in time. Here, based on [...] Read more.

In recent years, the tourism industry has developed rapidly. However, traditional tourism information has the disadvantages of slow response speed and limited information content, which cannot reflect the evolution trend of spatial and temporal patterns of tourism information in time. Here, based on the Baidu Index, we construct an evaluation framework to analyse the spatial and temporal flow of tourism information in the Chengdu–Chongqing urban cluster from 2011 to 2021. Then, we analyse the urban links between different network levels from the evolution pattern. Finally, we use the geodetector model to analyse its driving mechanism. The results show that Chengdu and Chongqing are the most active cities in the study area in terms of tourism information. The unbalanced development of tourism information between Chengdu and Chongqing and other cities in the region gradually deepens during the period 2011–2019 (polarization effect), but the unbalanced development moderates after 2019. On the other hand, cities in the middle of the Chengdu–Chongqing cluster always have weak agglomeration effects of tourism information. Cities with high tourism information outflow rates in the Chengdu–Chongqing city cluster are mainly concentrated around Chengdu. The average outflow rate of Deyang is the highest, at 27.8%. Cities with low tourist information outflow rates are primarily located in the west, central and south. Ya’an is the city with the lowest outflow rate, with an average of −62.2%. Specifically, Chengdu is the dominant and most radiantly influential city. The tourism information of the Chengdu–Chongqing urban cluster shows a radial network with Chengdu and Chongqing as the core. The driving force analysis shows that the push factor of tourist source, such as the number of people buying pension insurance, is the core driving mechanism, while the pull factor of destination, such as the park green area, and resistance factors such as psychological distance, are in the secondary position. In general, this paper uses Internet tourism data to expand the traditional tourism information research of the Chengdu–Chongqing urban cluster, which can better respond to the changes and needs of the tourism market and provide reference for the spatial optimization of tourism destinations. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Geographical Information System in Urban Design, Management or Evaluation)

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22 pages, 21410 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A High-Resolution Spatial Distribution-Based Integration Machine Learning Algorithm for Urban Fire Risk Assessment: A Case Study in Chengdu, China

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ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2023, 12(10), 404; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi12100404 - 03 Oct 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 802

Abstract

The development and functional perfection of urban areas have led to increasingly severe fire risks in recent decades. Previous urban fire risk assessment methods relied on subjective judgment, rough data collection, simple linear statistical methods, etc. These drawbacks can lead to low robustness [...] Read more.

The development and functional perfection of urban areas have led to increasingly severe fire risks in recent decades. Previous urban fire risk assessment methods relied on subjective judgment, rough data collection, simple linear statistical methods, etc. These drawbacks can lead to low robustness of evaluation and inadequate generalization ability. To resolve these problems, this paper selects the indicator and regression models based on the high-resolution data of the spatial distribution characteristics of Longquanyi distinct in Chengdu, China. and proposes an integrated machine learning algorithm for fire risk assessment. Firstly, the kernel density analysis is used to map the fourteen urban characteristics related to fire risks. The contributions of these indicators (characteristics) to fire risk and its corresponding index are determined by Random Forest (RF), Gradient Boosting Decision Tree (GBDT), and eXtreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost). Then, the spatial correlation of fire risks is determined through Moran’s I, and the spatial distribution pattern of indicator weights is clarified through the raster coefficient space analysis. Finally, with these selected indicators, we test the regression performance with a backpropagation neural network (BPNN) algorithm and a geographically weighted regression (GWR) model. The results indicate that numerical variables are more suitable than dummy variables for estimating micro-scale fire risks. The main factors with a high contribution are all numerical variables, including roads, gas pipelines, GDP, hazardous chemical enterprises, petrol and charging stations, cultural heritage protection units, assembly occupancies, and high-rise buildings. The machine learning algorithm integrating RF and BPNN shows the best performance (R² = 0.97), followed by the RF-GWR integrated algorithm (R² = 0.87). Compared with previous methods, this algorithm reduces the subjectivity of the traditional assessment models and shows the ability to automatically obtain the key indicators of urban fire risks. Hence, this new approach provides us with a more robust tool for assessing the future fire safety level in urban areas. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Geographical Information System in Urban Design, Management or Evaluation)

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24 pages, 9305 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Portraying the Influence Factor of Urban Vibrancy at Street Level Using Multisource Urban Data

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Rujuan Lu

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Liang Wu

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Deping Chu

ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2023, 12(10), 402; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi12100402 - 01 Oct 2023

Viewed by 881

Abstract

Exploring the factors influencing urban vibrancy can help policy development and advance urban planning and sustainable development. Previous studies have typically focused on the effects of physical environmental factors (e.g., built environment, urban landscape) on urban vibrancy, ignoring the role of non-physical environmental [...] Read more.

Exploring the factors influencing urban vibrancy can help policy development and advance urban planning and sustainable development. Previous studies have typically focused on the effects of physical environmental factors (e.g., built environment, urban landscape) on urban vibrancy, ignoring the role of non-physical environmental factors (e.g., urban psychological perceptions). In addition, these studies remain focused on relatively coarse spatial units and lack the exploration of finer-grained spatial structures. In this study, a novel framework is proposed to analyze urban vibrancy and its influencing factors at a more fine-grained street level. Firstly, two types of urban sensing data, POIs and Weibo check-ins, are integrated to portray the spatial distribution patterns of urban vibrancy on the streets. Secondly, a full convolutional network (FCN-8s) is used to segment the streetscape images of Beijing and use them as a basis to extract potential visual–spatial features and urban psychological perceptual features that influence urban vibrancy. Thirdly, we reveal the deeper causes of the impact of psychological perception on urban vibrancy. Finally, an improved ridge regression model is proposed to model the relationship between features and vibrancy, reducing the covariance between features while avoiding the reduction of important features. Satisfactory regression model performances were attained with adjusted R² values of 0.706, 0.743, and 0.807 at each characteristic level. The results of the study show that: Urban vibrancy is highly dependent on the proposed visual–spatial and urban psychological perception characteristics at the street level. In particular, positive urban psychological perceptions (safety, lively, wealthy) are positively correlated with urban vibrancy, while negative street perceptions (boring) are negatively correlated with urban vibrancy. Unlike previous research scales, our study shows that urban vibrancy portrayal based on the street scale has a greater potential to demonstrate fine-grained vibrancy distribution compared to the neighborhood scale. These findings may provide important insights for people-oriented urban development and planning. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Geographical Information System in Urban Design, Management or Evaluation)

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17 pages, 18947 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Assessing the Influence of Land Cover and Climate Change Impacts on Runoff Patterns Using CA-ANN Model and CMIP6 Data

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ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2023, 12(10), 401; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi12100401 - 01 Oct 2023

Viewed by 1042

Abstract

Dhaka city is experiencing rapid land cover changes, and the effects of climate change are highly visible. Investigating their combined influence on runoff patterns is vital for sustainable urban planning and water resources management. In this work, multi-date land cover classification was performed [...] Read more.

Dhaka city is experiencing rapid land cover changes, and the effects of climate change are highly visible. Investigating their combined influence on runoff patterns is vital for sustainable urban planning and water resources management. In this work, multi-date land cover classification was performed using a random forest (RF) algorithm. To validate accuracy of land cover classification, an assessment was conducted by employing kappa coefficient, which ranged from 85 to 96%, indicating a high agreement between classified images and the reference dataset. Future land cover changes were forecasted with cellular automata-artificial neural network (CA-ANN) model. Further, soil conservation service -curve number (SCS-CN) rainfall-runoff model combined with CMIP6 climate data was employed to assess how changes in land cover impact runoff within Dhaka metropolitan development plan (DMDP) area. Over the study period (2020–2100), substantial transformations of land cover were observed, i.e., built-up areas expanded to 1146.47 km² at the end of 2100, while agricultural areas and bare land diminished considerably. Consequently, monsoon runoff increased from 350.14 to 368.24 mm, indicating elevated hydrological responses. These findings emphasized an intricate interplay between urban dynamics and climatic shifts in shaping runoff patterns, underscoring urgency of incorporating these factors into urban planning strategies for sustainable water resources management in a rapidly growing city such as Dhaka. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Geographical Information System in Urban Design, Management or Evaluation)

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29 pages, 5144 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Assessment of Urban Resilience and Detection of Impact Factors Based on Spatial Autocorrelation Analysis and GeoDetector Model: A Case of Hunan Province

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ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2023, 12(10), 391; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi12100391 - 27 Sep 2023

Viewed by 789

Abstract

The rapid development of urbanization has led to increasing uncertainties related to urban safety risks, which has brought certain challenges to the sustainable development of cities. The concept of urban resilience has found a new way to improve the ability of a city [...] Read more.

The rapid development of urbanization has led to increasing uncertainties related to urban safety risks, which has brought certain challenges to the sustainable development of cities. The concept of urban resilience has found a new way to improve the ability of a city to absorb and resolve risks. However, the existing literature on the evaluation of urban resilience is mostly developed from a static perspective, lacking a systematic and dynamic understanding of the level of urban resilience. Therefore, this paper takes Hunan Province as the research object, determines the resilience evaluation indicators, collects the data of each indicator by using the observation method and the literature method, then chooses the comprehensive index method and other methods to measure the urban resilience level of Hunan Province in the years of 2010–2021, and observes the dynamic changes in the resilience level. And, we use the GeoDetector model to detect the dominant factors affecting the urban resilience level and the interaction between these factors. The results of this study show that: (1) The level of urban resilience in Hunan Province shows a steady upward trend from 2010 to 2021, but cities with low resilience levels hold a dominant position. Among all subsystems, the level of urban economic resilience is the highest. (2) From 2010 to 2021, the level of urban resilience in Hunan Province indicates a stepwise spatial structure in the spatial pattern, gradually decreasing from east to west. (3) The urban resilience of Hunan Province from 2010 to 2021 has a significant spatial agglomeration effect, mainly manifested as “L-H type” agglomeration and “L-L type” agglomeration. (4) The spatio-temporal differentiation of urban resilience is mainly caused by economic and social factors, while ecological, institutional, and infrastructure factors have a relatively small influence on the level of urban resilience. The interaction of impact factors will have a more significant influence on urban resilience. The research results of this article are of great significance for urban resilience construction in Hunan Province and even the whole country. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Geographical Information System in Urban Design, Management or Evaluation)

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22 pages, 4047 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Nonlinear Hierarchical Effects of Housing Prices and Built Environment Based on Multiscale Life Circle—A Case Study of Chengdu

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Yandi Song

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Shaoyao Zhang

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Wei Deng

ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2023, 12(9), 371; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi12090371 - 06 Sep 2023

Viewed by 793

Abstract

Determining the optimal planning scale for urban life circles and analyzing the associated built environment factors are crucial for comprehending and regulating residential differentiation. This study aims to bridge the current research void concerning the nonlinear hierarchical relationships between the built environment and [...] Read more.

Determining the optimal planning scale for urban life circles and analyzing the associated built environment factors are crucial for comprehending and regulating residential differentiation. This study aims to bridge the current research void concerning the nonlinear hierarchical relationships between the built environment and residential differentiation under the multiscale effect. Specifically, six indicators were derived from urban crowdsourcing data: diversity of built environment function (DBEF1), density of built environment function (DBEF2), blue–green environment (BGE), traffic accessibility (TA), population vitality (PV), and shopping vitality (SV). Then, a gradient boosting decision tree (GBDT) was applied to derive the analysis of these indicators. Finally, the interpretability of machine learning was leveraged to quantify the relative importance and nonlinear relationships between built environment indicators and housing prices. The results indicate a hierarchical structure and inflection point effect of the built environment on residential premiums. Notably, the impact trend of the built environment on housing prices within a 15 min life circle remains stable. The effect of crowd behavior, as depicted by PV and SV, on housing prices emerges as the most significant factor. Furthermore, this study also categorizes housing into common and high-end residences, thereby unveiling that distinct residential neighborhoods exhibit varying degrees of dependence on the built environment. The built environment exerts a scale effect on the formation of residential differentiation, with housing prices exhibiting increased sensitivity to the built environment at a smaller life circle scale. Conversely, the effect of the built environment on housing prices is amplified at a larger life circle scale. Under the dual influence of the scale and hierarchical effect, this framework can dynamically adapt to the uncertainty of changes in life circle planning policies and residential markets. This provides strong theoretical support for exploring the optimal life circle scale, alleviating residential differentiation, and promoting group fairness. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Geographical Information System in Urban Design, Management or Evaluation)

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23 pages, 10144 KiB

Open AccessArticle

LBS Tag Cloud: A Centralized Tag Cloud for Visualization of Points of Interest in Location-Based Services

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ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2023, 12(9), 360; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi12090360 - 01 Sep 2023

Viewed by 920

Abstract

Taking location-based service (LBS) as the research scenario and aiming at the limitation of visualizing LBS points of interest (POI) in conventional web maps, this article proposes a visualization method of LBS-POI based on tag cloud, which is called “LBS tag cloud”. In [...] Read more.

Taking location-based service (LBS) as the research scenario and aiming at the limitation of visualizing LBS points of interest (POI) in conventional web maps, this article proposes a visualization method of LBS-POI based on tag cloud, which is called “LBS tag cloud”. In this method, the user location is taken as the layout center, and the name of the POI is converted into a text tag and then placed around the center. The tags’ size, color, and placement location are calculated based on other attributes of the POI. The calculation of placement location is at the core of the LBS tag cloud. Firstly, the tag’s initial placement position and layout priority are calculated based on polar coordinates, and the tags are placed in the initial placement position in the order of layout priority. Then, based on the force-directed model, a repulsive force is applied to the tag from the layout center to make it move to a position without overlapping with other tags. During the move, the quadtree partition of the text glyph is used to optimize the detection of overlaps between tags. Taking scenic spots as an example, the experimental results show that the LBS tag cloud can present the attributes and distribution of POIs completely and intuitively and can effectively represent the relationship between the POIs and user location, which is a new visualization form suitable for spatial cognition. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Geographical Information System in Urban Design, Management or Evaluation)

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32 pages, 34096 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Proposing Optimal Locations for Runoff Harvesting and Water Management Structures in the Hami Qeshan Watershed, Iraq

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ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2023, 12(8), 312; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi12080312 - 30 Jul 2023

Viewed by 967

Abstract

Iraq, including the investigated watershed, has endured destructive floods and drought due to precipitation variability in recent years. Protecting susceptible areas from flooding and ensuring water supply is essential for maintaining basic human needs, agricultural production, and industry development. Therefore, locating and constructing [...] Read more.

Iraq, including the investigated watershed, has endured destructive floods and drought due to precipitation variability in recent years. Protecting susceptible areas from flooding and ensuring water supply is essential for maintaining basic human needs, agricultural production, and industry development. Therefore, locating and constructing storage structures is a significant initiative to alleviate flooding and conserve excessive surface water for future growth. This study aims to identify suitable locations for Runoff Harvesting (RH) and dam construction in the Hami Qeshan Watershed (HQW), Slemani Governorate, Iraq. We integrated in situ data, remotely sensed images, and Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) approaches for site selection within the Geographical Information Systems (GIS) environment. A total of ten criteria were employed to generate the RH suitability maps, including topographic position index, lithology, slope, precipitation, soil group, stream width, land cover, elevation, distance to faults, and distance to town/city. The weights of the utilized factors were determined via Weighted Linear Combination (WLC) and Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP). The resulting RH maps were validated through 16 dam sites preselected by the Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources (MAWR). Findings showed that the WLC method slightly outperformed AHP regarding efficiency and exhibited a higher overall accuracy. WLC achieved a higher average overall accuracy of 69%; consequently, it was chosen to locate new multipurpose dams for runoff harvesting in the study area. The overall accuracy of the 10 suggested locations in HQW ranged between 66% and 87%. Two of these sites align with the 16 locations MAWR has recommended: sites 2 and 5 in the northwest of HQW. It is noteworthy that all MAWR dam sites were situated in medium to excellent RH zones; however, they mostly sat on ineffective geological localities. It is concluded that a careful selection of the predictive factors and their respective weights is far more critical than the applied methods. This research offers decision-makers a practical and cost-effective tool for screening site suitability in data-scarce rugged terrains. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Geographical Information System in Urban Design, Management or Evaluation)

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20 pages, 50471 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Exploring the Correlation between Streetscape and Economic Vitality Using Machine Learning: A Case Study in the Old Urban District of Xuzhou, China

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Keran Li

and

Yan Lin

ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2023, 12(7), 267; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi12070267 - 04 Jul 2023

Viewed by 953

Abstract

The streetscapes of old urban districts record the changes in urban space and the vitality of socio-economic entities like storefronts. However, prior studies of urban vitality have preferred the demand end of crowd agglomeration to the supply end of commercial businesses, while the [...] Read more.

The streetscapes of old urban districts record the changes in urban space and the vitality of socio-economic entities like storefronts. However, prior studies of urban vitality have preferred the demand end of crowd agglomeration to the supply end of commercial businesses, while the refined application of street-view images (SVIs) and the spatial heterogeneity resulting from sectional differences among elements deserve further research. Under this context, this paper took both the alive and the closed storefronts as the objects and developed an analytical framework based on machine learning and SVIs to analyze the characteristics of the streetscape and the economic vitality, followed by a regression analysis between them with a multiscale geographically weighted regression (MGWR) model. Our findings comprise three aspects: (1) despite the sum of the storefronts being more often used, combining the alive and the closed businesses is beneficial to reflect the real economic vitality; (2) as a reflection of the spatial heterogeneity and sectional differences of elements, the asymmetric streetscape has a significant influence on the economic vitality; and (3) although different factors from the streetscape can influence economic vitality differently, based on varied proxies of the vitality, three factors, namely, higher difference value of the signboards, higher sum of glass interfaces, and lower difference value of the glass interfaces, can benefit the economic vitality. This research can support urban physical examination and the regeneration of old urban districts for urban planners, designers, and decision-makers, and provide new perspectives and proxies as well as a more fine-grained analysis among the traditional studies on economic vitality. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Geographical Information System in Urban Design, Management or Evaluation)

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