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Department of Spatial Planning
Students sitting in a lecture in the audimax. © Oliver Schaper​/​TU Dortmund
BSC: Lecture

Urban Analytics

With the increasing digitalisation of many areas of life, including our everyday lives, more and more data is being generated and accumulated. Much of this often unstructured and incoherently collected data can be a useful additional source of information for gaining a better understanding of urban systems at large. Furthermore, some data streams also allow near real-time monitoring and the enrichment of planning evidence bases with additional information. However, these positive effects and added values require a solid basic understanding of urban data infrastructures, suitable analytical approaches, and a critical view of urban data.

The module introduces basic concepts and analytical approaches of data-driven urban analysis – also called Urban Analytics. The following three topic areas are covered on the module:

  • Urban data infrastructures
  • Urban data analysis
  • Spatial planning research

In the first part, urban data infrastructures, basic terms and concepts are introduced. The topics covered include different parts of the so-called 'geoweb', including open geodata, geosensor networks, and user-generated geographic information, among others. The second part, urban data analysis, focuses on analytical approaches in the context of heterogeneous urban data sets. Topics from the fields of GIS, mapping, spatial analysis, visualisation, but also qualitative approaches are presented. The third part, spatial planning research, is intended to sharpen the focus on the link between urban analytics and spatial planning in relation to corresponding, concretely conducted research. This latter block will include invited lectures in which actual planning research at the outlined interface will be reported on.

Learning objectives:

  • Knowledge of basic terminology and concepts
  • Basic methodological understanding of analytical approaches including limitations
  • Ability to link data-driven urban research with planning concerns

Module Leader

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Calendar

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Location & approach

The campus of TU Dort­mund University is located close to interstate junction Dort­mund West, where the Sauerlandlinie A 45 (Frankfurt-Dort­mund) crosses the Ruhrschnellweg B 1 / A 40. The best interstate exit to take from A 45 is "Dort­mund-Eichlinghofen" (closer to Campus Süd), and from B 1 / A 40 "Dort­mund-Dorstfeld" (closer to Campus Nord). Signs for the uni­ver­si­ty are located at both exits. Also, there is a new exit before you pass over the B 1-bridge leading into Dort­mund.

To get from Campus Nord to Campus Süd by car, there is the connection via Vogelpothsweg/Baroper Straße. We recommend you leave your car on one of the parking lots at Campus Nord and use the H-Bahn (suspended monorail system), which conveniently connects the two campuses.

TU Dort­mund University has its own train station ("Dort­mund Uni­ver­si­tät"). From there, suburban trains (S-Bahn) leave for Dort­mund main station ("Dort­mund Hauptbahnhof") and Düsseldorf main station via the "Düsseldorf Airport Train Station" (take S-Bahn number 1, which leaves every 20 or 30 minutes). The uni­ver­si­ty is easily reached from Bochum, Essen, Mülheim an der Ruhr and Duisburg.

You can also take the bus or subway train from Dort­mund city to the uni­ver­si­ty: From Dort­mund main station, you can take any train bound for the Station "Stadtgarten", usually lines U41, U45, U 47 and U49. At "Stadtgarten" you switch trains and get on line U42 towards "Hombruch". Look out for the Station "An der Palmweide". From the bus stop just across the road, busses bound for TU Dort­mund University leave every ten minutes (445, 447 and 462). Another option is to take the subway routes U41, U45, U47 and U49 from Dort­mund main station to the stop "Dort­mund Kampstraße". From there, take U43 or U44 to the stop "Dort­mund Wittener Straße". Switch to bus line 447 and get off at "Dort­mund Uni­ver­si­tät S".

The AirportExpress is a fast and convenient means of transport from Dort­mund Airport (DTM) to Dort­mund Central Station, taking you there in little more than 20 minutes. From Dort­mund Central Station, you can continue to the uni­ver­si­ty campus by interurban railway (S-Bahn). A larger range of in­ter­na­tio­nal flight connections is offered at Düsseldorf Airport (DUS), which is about 60 kilometres away and can be directly reached by S-Bahn from the uni­ver­si­ty station.

The H-Bahn is one of the hallmarks of TU Dort­mund University. There are two stations on Campus Nord. One ("Dort­mund Uni­ver­si­tät S") is directly located at the suburban train stop, which connects the uni­ver­si­ty directly with the city of Dort­mund and the rest of the Ruhr Area. Also from this station, there are connections to the "Technologiepark" and (via Campus Süd) Eichlinghofen. The other station is located at the dining hall at Campus Nord and offers a direct connection to Campus Süd every five minutes.

The facilities of TU Dort­mund University are spread over two campuses, the larger Campus North and the smaller Campus South. Additionally, some areas of the uni­ver­si­ty are located in the adjacent "Technologiepark".

Site Map of TU Dort­mund University (Second Page in English)