Author: Ahmad, Ahmad Muhamad Senousi
Title: Modelling high-frequency city using multilayer network analysis
Advisors: Liu, Xin Tao (LSGI)
Shi, Wenzhong (LSGI)
Degree: Ph.D.
Year: 2021
Subject: City planning
Land use -- Planning
Hong Kong Polytechnic University -- Dissertations
Department: Department of Land Surveying and Geo-Informatics
Pages: xii, 118 pages : color illustrations
Language: English
Abstract: Traditional urban theories tend to model cities as static simple places such as land uses that function and change with low frequency in space and time. With advances in information and communication technology, modern cities are now functioning over short periods (hourly, daily, weekly, etc.) using ubiquitous sensors that provide immediate updates to the system of our concern. In contrast with traditional urban planning that are much slower, "our attention is turning away from long-term plans, to thinking about how we might improve the city in the very short term. This is what we might call the 'high-frequency city' ..." (Batty, 2018). To reveal the deep structure of how cities function, it is agreed that modern cities should be understood and modelled as systems of networks and flows, with particular emphasis on the relations between objects that compose the urban system. A better model of the high frequency city will provide new ways for better city management and design of future cities. Despite that, little has been done to propose a comprehensive framework to model and evaluate the high frequency city. The main objective of this thesis is to conceptualise and model the high-frequency city by proposing a comprehensive framework from the perspectives of complexity science, network theory and big data. The flow of moving objects (people, vehicles, and goods, etc.) play a key role in modeling network system in complex cities. In this context, we proposed twenty-four indicators relevant to urban mobility to quantify the degree of high frequency city considering multilayer network approaches. The indicators are associated with five different subsystems of a city system, namely human mobility, public transport systems (PTSs), road network system, urban goods movements (logistics systems) and land use. As the city is a complex system, the subsystems function in an interdependent manner. Thus, we propose a comprehensive methodological framework for assessing and comparing high-frequency cities, considering the application of a multilayer network to estimate the relevant indicators. In order to better weight the selected indicators and rank the alternatives (e.g., districts or cities) while avoiding human intervention and errors, the Entropy Weight Method (EWM) and TOPSIS methods are integrated into the proposed framework. In this way, the proposed framework can be applied at inter- and intra-city levels to evaluate frequency. Thus, a high-frequency city is considered in light of our conceptualization: A self-organised city that can regain its pulse, balance its urban functions, and continue to thrive and resilience by creating an environment that is conducive for residents to engage in their various activities at various times while maintaining sustainability as much as possible. In contrast, the slow city needs to be improved and restructured to balance its urban functions. An empirical analysis of frequency city at the intra-city level shows that the most energetic district with the maintenance of the equilibrium of its function obtained higher scores based on our proposed High-Frequency City Index (HFCI) and vice versa. This thesis could be a pioneering study to better highlight the aspects in which urban policies and operations can be adjusted to improve urban liveability and urban sustainability as much as possible in a smart city context.
Rights: All rights reserved
Access: open access

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Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://theses.lib.polyu.edu.hk/handle/200/11581