2015/12/03 by Claire Lagesse, Lagesse, Claire
Engineering · Social Sciences · #FOS: Physical sciences #Latin American Urban Studies #Physics and Society (physics.soc-ph) #Urban Design and Spatial Analysis
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.1512.01268
openalex publication_date 2015/12/03 · openalex created_date 2022/09/30 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
Cities can be seen as the epitome of complex systems. They arise from a set\nof interactions and components so diverse that is almost impossible to describe\nthem exhaustively. Amid this diversity, we chose an object which orchestrates\nthe development and use of an urban area : the road network. Following the\nestablished work on space syntax, we represent road networks as graphs. From\nthis symbolic representation we can build a geographical object called the way.\nThe way is defined by local rules independently from the direction in which the\nnetwork is read. This complex object, and several indicators leaned upon it,\nallows us to carry out deep analysis of spatial networks, independent from\ntheir borders.\n With this methodology, we demonstrate how different road graphs, from various\nplaces in the world, show similar properties. We show how such analysis, based\non the topological and topographical properties of their road networks, allows\nus to trace back some aspects of the historical and geographical contexts of\ncity formation. We define a model of temporal differentiation, where the\nstructural changes through time in the network are highlighted.\n This methodology was thought to be generic so it can be used with several\nkinds of spatial networks, opening the panel of research applications and\nfuture work.\n Key words : Road network, Graph theory, Spatial analysis, Complex system,\nUrban modelling.\n