Spatiotemporal Patterns Evolution of Residential Areas and Transportation Facilities Based on Multi-Source Data: A Case Study of Xi’an, China

Abstract

The spatiotemporal patterns of residential and supporting service facilities are critical to effective urban planning. However, with growing urban sprawl and congestion, the spatial distribution patterns and evolutionary characteristics of these areas show significant uncertainty. This research was conducted for six phases from 2012 to 2022, incorporating datasets of point of interest (POI) data for residential areas and transportation facilities (RATFs) and OpenStreetMap (OSM) data. Using exploratory spatial data analysis (ESDA) and standard deviation ellipse, we investigated the spatiotemporal patterns and directional characteristics of RATFs in Xi’an, as well as their evolution and underlying causes. The analysis demonstrated that: (1) The spatial distribution of RATFs in Xi’an exhibits non-uniform and gradually evolving patterns, with significant spatial agglomeration characteristics over the past decade. Residential areas (RAs) exhibit a spatial autocorrelation that is high in the middle and low in the surrounding areas, while transportation facilities (TFs) exhibit spatial patterns that are high in the southern and low in the northern areas. (2) Overall, the number of RATFs has continued to increase, and they exhibit significant spatial autocorrelation. Specifically, the trend of RAs concentrating in the central city has become increasingly prominent, while TFs have expanded from the center to the north. (3) Furthermore, from the perspective of supply–demand matching, this study proposes targeted adjustment strategies for the distribution of RATFs. It provides significant references for the optimization of service facilities and provides new ideas and practical experience for urban spatial analysis methods based on multi-source data.