The spatial patterns of transport networks generated with a neighborhood-diffusion algorithm

摘要

Not only in real societies, but also in virtual worlds, the spatial pattern of transport networks imposes important influences on the travel, work and living style of people or agents. To gain a deep understanding of such influences, this study simulates the developmental process of a transport network by deploying an algorithm of neighborhood-diffusion on an artificial society platform with characteristics of geographic systems. The finally developed spatial pattern of transport network differs significantly from that yielded previously from using a DLA algorithm. Importantly, it is demonstrated that the transportation network produced with the neighborhood-diffusion algorithm displays a spatial pattern very similar to the idealized agricultural land use style described by von Thünen rings. Hence, the neighborhood-diffusion algorithm is more suitable for understanding the formative process of rural land use change, in contrast to the suitability of the DLA algorithm for explaining urban developmental process.