Redefining the boundaries of Chinese cities—Analysis based on multisource geographical big data

Abstract

In the process of rapid urbanization in China, the development of Chinese cities is progressing rapidly and urgently needs a new method of city boundary division that can reflect the true boundaries of cities. This study uses national road intersection and points of interest (POIs) data from 2016, among other multisource big data, to define the true boundaries of Chinese cities in that year. The results show the following: first, the use of clustering algorithms resulted in 6789 preliminary natural cities in 2016. Second, the combination of POI data and the elimination of POIs with a value of zero or below a threshold resulted in 4905 natural cities in China in 2016. Third, the 4905 natural cities were divided into four groups, resulting in 1981 sprawling cities, 842 vibrant and nonexpanding cities, 1048 expanding and nonvibrant cities, and 1034 vibrant and expanding cities. Fourth, the number and distribution of “ghost cities” nationwide were determined, with 612 natural cities identified as “ghost cities.” Fifth, various big datasets were used to verify the scientificity and rationality of the classification in this study.