Spatial patterns of tourist accommodation location through complementary and integrated analyses: GIS, space syntax and web–scraping

El turismo urbano es una importante actividad para las ciudades en la actualidad. Es responsable de la transformación y especialización de múltiples áreas urbanas a nivel mundial, lo que no está exento de problemas. Las investigaciones al respecto se han producido sobre grandes ciudades, existiendo un vacío de conocimiento sobre categorías urbanas inferiores. El alojamiento es la infraestructura básica que lo soporta, constituyendo su localización un indicador de idoneidad turística. El objeto del trabajo consiste en conocer qué factores ambientales y en qué medida respaldan la elección de alojamiento turístico según su localización. Para ello se geocodifican los alojamientos estudiados, se mapean factores de influencia y se realizan análisis espaciales y de proximidad. Posteriormente se comprueba estadísticamente la relación entre factores ambientales y evaluaciones web post-compra de viajeros. Los resultados muestran cómo el turismo urbano se distribuye espacialmente respondiendo a patrones relacionados con los usos del suelo y la cercanía a las atracciones turísticas. Se evidencia un ejemplo de estructura turística propia de ciudades medias constituida por ubicaciones de alojamientos bien valoradas próximas a concentraciones turísticas patrimoniales localizadas en el centro histórico. Los resultados pueden ser útiles a la inversión privada y a la planificación para mejorar estas ciudades.Urban tourism is an important activity in cities today. It is responsible for the transformation and specialization of multiple urban areas around the world, which is not without problems. Research on it has only been carried out on large cities, with a knowledge gap in relation to lower-scale urban categories. Accommodation is the basic infrastructure that supports it, its location being an indicator of tourist suitability. The aim of this work is to know which environmental factors and to what extent they support the choice of accommodation according to its location. For this purpose, the studied accommodations are geocoded, influencing factors are mapped, and spatial and proximity analyses are carried out. Subsequently, the correlation between environmental factors and travellers' post-purchase web evaluations is statistically verified. The results show how urban tourism is spatially distributed according to patterns based on land use and proximity to tourist attractions. There is evidence of a typical tourist structure of medium-sized cities made up of well-valued accommodation locations close to heritage tourist concentrations located within the historic centre. The results can be useful for private investment and planning to improve these cities

Villes moyennes espagnoles du XXI siècle. Révision et analyse bibliométrique des approches et thématiques prédominants

El debate en torno a las ciudades medias españolas desde las ciencias afines al estudio del territorio, dentro de un contexto europeo y mundial, ha aumentado su grado de complejidad y diversidad a lo largo del s. XXI. Las cuestiones en torno a su tamaño, rango o clasificación han cedido protagonismo en favor de aspectos relacionados con la calidad de vida, la supervivencia económica o el impulso de su competitividad territorial en un mundo más globalizado. El objetivo de este trabajo es identificar y caracterizar los enfoques y temáticas actuales más influyentes para el futuro desarrollo de estas ciudades. Mediante el uso de indicadores bibliométricos se determina su importancia relativa, lo que resulta de interés en los procesos de toma de decisiones relacionados con la planificación estratégica y la agenda política de estas ciudades. Para ello, se lleva a cabo una revisión de las investigaciones más relevantes al respecto realizadas en los últimos años. El enfoque predominante está vinculado al desarrollo, en el que priman temáticas ligadas a la dimensión económica y participativa de la sostenibilidad como la escala, las redes, la economía, la innovación o las partes interesadas.Debate referring Spanish medium sized cities from those sciences related to the study of the territory, within an European and world context, have increased in complexity and diversity throughout the XXIst century. Matters such as size, rank or classification have given up their leadership in favour of quality of life, economic survival or the boost of territorial competitiveness in a highly globalized world. The objective of this research is to identify and characterize the most influential and current approaches and topics regarding future development of those cities. By means of using bibliometric indicators it is determined its relative importance, which results interesting in the decision making process related to strategic regional and urgan planning and political agenda of those cities. In order to do that, a review of the most relevant investigations thereon in recent years has done. Prevailing approach is linked to development, in which outstand topics linked to participative and economic dimension of sustainability, such as scale, networking, economy, innovation or stakeholders.Le discussion a propos des villes moyennes espagnoles du point de vue de l’etude du territoire dedans le contexte européen et mondial a augmenté sa complexité et diversité au cours du XXIieme secle. Les sujets tels que la taille, le rang ou le classment urbain on perdue leur importance a l’avantage de la qualite de vie, le survie économique ou l’élan de la competitivité territorial dans un monde globalisé. La finalité de cette monographie est d’identifier et caractériser les approches courrantes et les thématiques actuelles les plus influents à propos du prochain développement de ces villes. On détermine leur importance relative via l’usage d’indicateurs bibliométriques, tout ce q’est intéressant au procès de prise de decision en mattière de planification spaciatiale et d’agendat de procedures. Pour attendre cet objetif, on realise an analyse sur les recherches les plus pertinentes à ce sujet des dernières années. L’approach prédominant est lié au développement, où sont soulignèes thématiques concernant à la dimension économique et participatif de la durabilité, comme èchelle, réseaux, économie, innovation ou les principales parties prenantes

Sustainability, planning and urban development: Seek key in-tegration by studying recent cases

Objective: The application of sustainable development in urban planning and development is a key issue in the management and practice of urbanization in academic and professional circles. Although its importance has been recognized separately, there is now a need for an integrated discussion on planning, urban development and sustainability. The purpose is to clarify their meaning and explore their compatibility space and limitations, which increases the knowledge in this field. Methodology: Through the systematic study of specific literature, this paper makes a critical study on the recent cases of the interaction of these terms, focusing on the diversity of their methods and materials. The complexity of achieving sustainable urban planning and development is emphasized and discussed. Result: The results show that people are more and more interested in the research in this field. Cities can be one of the most advantageous areas for addressing ecological issues through strategic, multi-scale, innovative, visionary and educational planning, derived from participatory processes, assessed by indicators and agreed by stakeholders at all levels. Originality: In order to clarify these mechanisms, suggestions for further research are also put forward

Survey Assessment for Decision Support Using Self-Organizing Maps Profile Characterization with an Odds and Cluster Heat Map: Application to Children’s Perception of Urban School Environments

The interpretation of opinion and satisfaction surveys based exclusively on statistical analysis often faces difficulties due to the nature of the information and the requirements of the available statistical methods. These difficulties include the concurrence of categorical information with answers based on Likert scales with only a few levels, or the distancing of the necessary heuristic approach of the decision support system (DSS). The artificial neural network used for data analysis, called Kohonen or self-organizing maps (SOM), although rarely used for survey analysis, has been applied in many fields, facilitating the graphical representation and the simple interpretation of high-dimensionality data. This clustering method, based on unsupervised learning, also allows obtaining profiles of respondents without the need to provide additional information for the creation of these clusters. In this work, we propose the identification of profiles using SOM for evaluating opinion surveys. Subsequently, non-parametric chi-square tests were first conducted to contrast whether answer was independent of each profile found, and in the case of statistical significance (p ≤ 0.05), the odds ratio was evaluated as an indicator of the effect size of such dependence. Finally, all results were displayed in an odds and cluster heat map so that they could be easily interpreted and used to make decisions regarding the survey results. The methodology was applied to the analysis of a survey based on forms administered to children (N = 459) about their perception of the urban environment close to their school, obtaining relevant results, facilitating results interpretation, and providing support to the decision-process.This research was funded by Campus de Excelencia Internacional BIOTIC Granada, University of Granada, grant number V1.2015 and the APC was funded by University of Granada

Porosity and fragmentation of the block in the city core: a Nolli’s innovation perspective

We thank the valuable support given by Rafael López-Toribio Moreno in the elaboration of the maps.Urban centrality demands building space that erodes and implodes blocks in the most accessible places. Nolli's map made in 1748 was the first known graphic reference that visualised the phenomenon. The map and its contemporary interpretation are the starting point for this paper. The research has graphic support from existing maps that used Nolli's idea to represent those cities, and other maps created ad hoc. It is argued how territories are divided into small units that fold and wrinkle, drawing the conclusion that they do it to (i) find the maximum useful surface area in the minimum amount of space; (ii) concentrate activity; (iii) enable interaction; (iv) optimise resources; (v) accelerate processes; and (vi) cure urban diseases. Methodologically, this is done in two large sections, one showing erosion, division and fragmentation of the central urban layouts, and another emphasising the importance of architecture extending urban layouts to other directions

Accesibilidad en dos formas urbanas de la periferia interior. Análisis configuracional y de visibilidad

La construcción de las primeras periferias de muchas ciudades europeas entre los años cincuenta y setenta del pasado siglo se caracterizó por la profusión de actuaciones unitarias basadas en los principios del urbanismo funcionalista –polígonos de vivienda masiva– y otras formas que se produjeron en paralelo a estos como resultado de un crecimiento gradual, más o menos planificado, y más próximo al sistema tradicional basado en calles y manzanas – “periferias ordinarias”–. Frente a aproximaciones más específicas que ahondan en el carácter original de enclaves de los polígonos de vivienda, sin considerar su actual contexto urbano, esta investigación tiene por objetivo evidenciar y comparar morfológicamente las condiciones de accesibilidad que presentan ambos tipos de crecimiento urbano. El estudio se basa en una adecuación del modelo “Valor de Nodo y Lugar”, desarrollando el análisis configuracional multiescalar y de visibilidad en dos polígonos de la ciudad de Zaragoza y sus  correspondientes “periferias ordinarias”. Los resultados evidencian que la situación relativa de los polígonos de vivienda en la ciudad ha cambiado con el tiempo, pasando en muchos casos de una posición de aislamiento en la periferia a una “posición pericentral”. Ambas formas se encuentran bien integradas en la red urbana a nivel global. Sin embargo, a escala intermedia los polígonos muestran una peor accesibilidad que los fragmentos de “periferia ordinaria”. A escala de actuación, también estos últimos se muestran más seguros visualmente y con mayor accesibilidad. Estos análisis pueden ser útiles a la planificación para mejorar la accesibilidad y dinamizar estas formas urbanas

Evidence of Green Areas, Cycle Infrastructure and Attractive Destinations Working Together in Development on Urban Cycling

The built environment influences and promotes cycling that has now become a challenge for sustainable urban mobility in many cities where this mode of transport carries little weight. This is the case for Granada (Spain), a medium-sized city in southern Europe, which as a university city and with lots of green areas, could find potential supportive factors to promote cycling. Website-apps with a Global Positioning System (GPS), such as Ciclogreen that encourage active accessibility try to promote cycling and are supported by the University of Granada. The aim of this work is to assess the capacity of green areas and some influential factors of their built environment to attract cycling routes. To this end, a spatial analysis was made and interpreted by a statistical model to check the correlation between these factors and a high number of cycling routes through or near the green areas. The results show a high number of cycling routes within urban surroundings that include green areas, cycle lanes, university facilities, and public car parks in proximity relationships. Identifying synergies among these urban factors and the information and incentive coming from a digital catalyst in shape on an app could be useful in urban planning for cycling

A GIS-Based Method for Analysing the Association Between School-Built Environment and Home-School Route Measures with Active Commuting to School in Urban Children and Adolescents

In the current call for a greater human health and well-being as a sustainable development goal, to encourage active commuting to and from school (ACS) seems to be a key factor. Research focusing on the analysis of the association between environmental factors and ACS in children and adolescents has reported limited and inconclusive evidence, so more knowledge is needed about it. The main aim of this study is to examine the association between different built environmental factors of both school neighbourhood and home-school route with ACS of children and adolescents belonging to urban areas. The ACS level was evaluated using a self-reported questionnaire. Built environment variables (i.e., density of residents, street connectivity and mixed land use) within a school catchment area and home-school route characteristics (i.e., distance and pedestrian route directness—PRD) were measured using a geographic information system (GIS) and examined together with ACS levels. Subsequently, the association between environmental factors and ACS was analysed by binary logistic regression. Several cut-off points of the route measures were explored using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. In addition, the PRD was further studied regarding different thresholds. The results showed that 70.5% of the participants were active and there were significant associations between most environmental factors and ACS. Most participants walked to school when routes were short (distance variable in children: OR = 0.980; p = 0.038; and adolescents: OR = 0.866; p < 0.001) and partially direct (PRD variable in children: OR = 11.334; p < 0.001; and adolescents: OR = 3.513; p < 0.001), the latter specially for children. Mixed land uses (OR = 2.037; p < 0.001) and a high density of street intersections (OR = 1.640; p < 0.001) clearly encouraged adolescents walking and slightly discouraged children walking (OR = 0.657, p = 0.010; and OR = 0.692, p = 0.025, respectively). The assessment of ACS together with the environmental factors using GIS separately for children and adolescents can inform future friendly and sustainable communities.Spanish Ministry of Economy, Industry and Competitiveness DEP2016-75598-REuropean Union (EU) DEP2016-75598-RUniversity of Granada, Plan Propio de Investigacion 2016 (Excellence actions: Unit of Excellence on Exercise and Health -UCEES-)Junta de Andalucía, Consejería de Conocimiento, Investigacion y Universidades, European Regional Development Fund SOMM17/6107/UG

Emplacement et localisation dans l’origine et le développement de la forme urbaine des Villes Moyennes andalouses de l’intérieur

The current urban form of Medium–Sized inland Andalusian Cities is a consequence of an incremental development complex and diverse throughout time. The morphological characteristics of historic centres, based on the distinctive features of its location, show evidence for a degree of urban cohesion and a type of relationship with the surrounding territories which surpasses subsequent development. The former, derived from its location in a greater spatial setting, are arranged by means of a more recent urban planning disregarding these factors. This contribution tries to define the different areas in a city affected by this morphological transformation and the main urban elements which compose them, as well as to identify major factors influencing this transformation, with the aim to underline a need for revision in the instruments of general planning in these cities to favour a greater urban balance.La forma urbana actual de la ciudad media andaluza de interior es consecuencia de un proceso de crecimiento acumulativo, complejo y diverso en el tiempo. Las características morfológicas de su centro histórico, fundamentadas en las particularidades de su emplazamiento, presentan un grado de cohesión urbana y un tipo de relación con el resto del territorio que aventajan a las de sus crecimientos posteriores; éstas últimas, derivadas de su localización en un ámbito espacial mayor, son ordenadas mediante un planeamiento reciente poco atento a estos factores. Este trabajo pretende caracterizar tanto las distintas áreas de la ciudad implicadas en esta transformación morfológica como los principales elementos urbanos que las componen, así como identificar los factores influyentes en la misma, con objeto de evidenciar la necesidad de una revisión de los instrumentos de planificación general de estas ciudades, en aras de un mayor equilibrio urbano.La forme urbaine actuelle de la ville moyenne andalouse de l’intérieur est la conséquence d’un processus de croissance accumulative, complexe et diverse dans le temps. Les caractéristiques morphologiques de son centre historique, qui dépendent des particularités de son emplacement, présentent un plus grand degré de cohésion urbaine et une relation plus étroite avec le reste du territoire que celles de leurs développements ultérieurs ; ces dernières, dérivées de leur localisation dans un cadre spacial plus grand, sont ordonnées selon une approche récente qui prend peu en compte ces facteurs. Ce travail prétend d’une part caractériser les différents milieux de la ville impliqués dans cette transformation morphologique ainsi que les principaux éléments urbains qui les composent et, d’autre part, identifier les facteurs qui influent sur celle–ci, afin de mettre en évidence la nécessité d’une révision des instruments de planification générale de ces villes, en vue d’un meilleur équilibre urbain

Viejas y nuevas centralidades en las ciudades medias andaluzas: Evolución y estrategias urbanas

Since the last quarter of last century, the traditional elements of centrality located in historic centers of medium-sized Andalusian cities have cohabitated alongside other, very distinct focuses of urban attraction. A multiple diversity of new centralities takes place, whose appearance and location on the urban and territorial scene is grounded in the crystallization of distinct factors. On the one hand, the incorporation of new activities and a greater development and diffusion of the already existing ones has given rise to a new scale of architecture in these cities. On the other hand, the substitution of the traditional uses by others of greater directionality produces a specialization of the urban center. Likewise, the infrastructures, understood as central elements which interact with the city, tend to stimulate or strangle the urban fabric, depending on the suitability of their type and layout. This article seeks to show the traditional centralities and to elucidate the processes which have given rise to those which are most contemporary, different from the previous ones; to sketch the future urban situation of these cities, passing through the reformulation of their old and new centralities in consideration of adequate urban strategies.Desde el último cuarto del siglo pasado, los tradicionales elementos de centralidad localizados en los centros históricos de las ciudades medias andaluzas, conviven con otros focos de atracción urbana bien distintos. Tiene lugar una diversidad múltiple de nuevas centralidades, cuya aparición y localización en la escena urbana y territorial se fundamenta en la cristalización de distintos factores. Por un lado, la incorporación de nuevas actividades y un mayor desarrollo y difusión de otras ya existentes, ha dado lugar a una nueva escala de la arquitectura en estas ciudades. Por otro lado, la sustitución de los usos tradicionales por otros de mayor direccionalidad produce una especialización del centro urbano. Igualmente, las infraestructuras, entendidas como elementos centrales que interactúan con la ciudad, tienden a estimular o estrangular el tejido urbano dependiendo de la idoneidad de su tipo y trazado. Este artículo persigue evidenciar las centralidades tradicionales y esclarecer los procesos que han dado lugar a las de mayor contemporaneidad, diferentes a las anteriores. Esbozar el futuro urbano de estas ciudades pasa por la reformulación de sus viejas y nuevas centralidades mediante la consideración de estrategias urbanas adecuadas