Tue
26
May
Seminars and Conferences
Universal Patterns in Urban Street Network Form
On Tuesday, 26 May 2026, from 11:00 to 12:00, the seminar “Universal Patterns in Urban Street Network Form” will take place.
The event, organized within the framework of UrEM (Urban Evolution Morphology) activities, will be held in a hybrid format, with the possibility to participate online.
The seminar will feature Geoff Boeing (University of Southern California) and will be moderated by Luca S. D’Acci (Politecnico di Torino, Interuniversity Department of Regional and Urban Studies and Planning-DIST).
Abstract
Urban street networks shape accessibility, mobility, and urban resilience. Previous studies have emphasized differences between cities’ street network forms, but this talk argues that they actually exhibit remarkable universality across urban areas.
The research models the street networks of all urban areas worldwide and calculates specific form indicators, comparing their statistical dispersion with that of other urban characteristics unrelated to network structure.
Despite geographical and historical differences, cities converge toward a narrow and homogeneous set of street network forms—a phenomenon not observed for other urban variables such as city size. The geometric and topological properties of street networks therefore show strong universality, attributable to physical constraints, urbanization processes, and optimization dynamics.
It is possible to join the webinar at the following link.
For more information, please visit the UrEM website.
The event, organized within the framework of UrEM (Urban Evolution Morphology) activities, will be held in a hybrid format, with the possibility to participate online.
The seminar will feature Geoff Boeing (University of Southern California) and will be moderated by Luca S. D’Acci (Politecnico di Torino, Interuniversity Department of Regional and Urban Studies and Planning-DIST).
Abstract
Urban street networks shape accessibility, mobility, and urban resilience. Previous studies have emphasized differences between cities’ street network forms, but this talk argues that they actually exhibit remarkable universality across urban areas.
The research models the street networks of all urban areas worldwide and calculates specific form indicators, comparing their statistical dispersion with that of other urban characteristics unrelated to network structure.
Despite geographical and historical differences, cities converge toward a narrow and homogeneous set of street network forms—a phenomenon not observed for other urban variables such as city size. The geometric and topological properties of street networks therefore show strong universality, attributable to physical constraints, urbanization processes, and optimization dynamics.
It is possible to join the webinar at the following link.
For more information, please visit the UrEM website.