The Evolution of City Form : Evidence from Satellite Data

This paper describes new global evidence—derived from satellite data—for rates and patterns of urban spatial development since 1990 along three margins: horizontal spread (outward extension), infill development (inward additions in the gaps left be...

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Main Authors: Lall, Somik V., Lebrand, Mathilde, Soppelsa, Maria Edisa
Format: Working Paper
Language:English
Published: World Bank, Washington, DC 2021
Subjects:
Online Access:http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/551511618021559759/The-Evolution-of-City-Form-Evidence-from-Satellite-Data
http://hdl.handle.net/10986/35440
id okr-10986-35440
recordtype oai_dc
spelling okr-10986-354402022-09-20T00:09:30Z The Evolution of City Form : Evidence from Satellite Data Lall, Somik V. Lebrand, Mathilde Soppelsa, Maria Edisa TRANSPORT NETWORK LAND USE CITY STRUCTURE SATELLITE IMAGERY This paper describes new global evidence—derived from satellite data—for rates and patterns of urban spatial development since 1990 along three margins: horizontal spread (outward extension), infill development (inward additions in the gaps left between earlier structures), and vertical layering (upward construction). The end product of this growth is floor space, the amount and distribution of which are central to understanding how a city becomes livable and sustainable. Over the quarter century between 1990 and 2015, urban built-up area worldwide grew by 30 percent through horizontal spread and infill. While most cities grow through a combination of horizontal spread and infill, the paper provides the first estimates of the relative prominence of each type of expansion at different stages of economic development. In low-income and lower-middle-income countries, 90 percent of urban built-up area expansion occurs as horizontal spread. The study also finds that increasing incomes are a uniquely necessary condition for a rise in floor space per person through vertical layering: the reason is that building tall is capital intensive. The analysis highlights that if a city’s population doubles but incomes stay constant, the city’s floor space per person declines by 40 percent; by contrast, if per capita income doubles but population stays constant, the city’s total floor space per person increases by 29 percent. 2021-04-19T13:13:37Z 2021-04-19T13:13:37Z 2021-04 Working Paper http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/551511618021559759/The-Evolution-of-City-Form-Evidence-from-Satellite-Data http://hdl.handle.net/10986/35440 English Policy Research Working Paper;No. 9618 CC BY 3.0 IGO http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/igo World Bank World Bank, Washington, DC Publications & Research Publications & Research :: Policy Research Working Paper
repository_type Digital Repository
institution_category Foreign Institution
institution Digital Repositories
building World Bank Open Knowledge Repository
collection World Bank
language English
topic TRANSPORT NETWORK
LAND USE
CITY STRUCTURE
SATELLITE IMAGERY
spellingShingle TRANSPORT NETWORK
LAND USE
CITY STRUCTURE
SATELLITE IMAGERY
Lall, Somik V.
Lebrand, Mathilde
Soppelsa, Maria Edisa
The Evolution of City Form : Evidence from Satellite Data
relation Policy Research Working Paper;No. 9618
description This paper describes new global evidence—derived from satellite data—for rates and patterns of urban spatial development since 1990 along three margins: horizontal spread (outward extension), infill development (inward additions in the gaps left between earlier structures), and vertical layering (upward construction). The end product of this growth is floor space, the amount and distribution of which are central to understanding how a city becomes livable and sustainable. Over the quarter century between 1990 and 2015, urban built-up area worldwide grew by 30 percent through horizontal spread and infill. While most cities grow through a combination of horizontal spread and infill, the paper provides the first estimates of the relative prominence of each type of expansion at different stages of economic development. In low-income and lower-middle-income countries, 90 percent of urban built-up area expansion occurs as horizontal spread. The study also finds that increasing incomes are a uniquely necessary condition for a rise in floor space per person through vertical layering: the reason is that building tall is capital intensive. The analysis highlights that if a city’s population doubles but incomes stay constant, the city’s floor space per person declines by 40 percent; by contrast, if per capita income doubles but population stays constant, the city’s total floor space per person increases by 29 percent.
format Working Paper
author Lall, Somik V.
Lebrand, Mathilde
Soppelsa, Maria Edisa
author_facet Lall, Somik V.
Lebrand, Mathilde
Soppelsa, Maria Edisa
author_sort Lall, Somik V.
title The Evolution of City Form : Evidence from Satellite Data
title_short The Evolution of City Form : Evidence from Satellite Data
title_full The Evolution of City Form : Evidence from Satellite Data
title_fullStr The Evolution of City Form : Evidence from Satellite Data
title_full_unstemmed The Evolution of City Form : Evidence from Satellite Data
title_sort evolution of city form : evidence from satellite data
publisher World Bank, Washington, DC
publishDate 2021
url http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/551511618021559759/The-Evolution-of-City-Form-Evidence-from-Satellite-Data
http://hdl.handle.net/10986/35440
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