We Used AI To Measure Canada's Urban Sprawl

[M II A II R II K]

We Used AI To Measure Canada's Urban Sprawl


March 7th, 2022

By Nael Shiab & Isabelle Bouchard

See More: https://ici.radio-canada.ca/info/202...climatiques/en

“We’re a suburban nation,” said Sasha Tsenkova, a professor of architecture, planning and landscape at the University of Calgary, who looked at our findings. In all, 1,700 square kilometres have been added to the country’s nine biggest metropolitan areas since 2001. It’s as if the country’s urban areas have increased by three-and-a-half times the size of the island of Montreal.

- And since urban sprawl (up 34 per cent) has progressed on average faster than population growth (up 26 per cent), each Canadian occupies, on average, more space, farther away from city centres. In 2001, residents of the nine largest centres occupied an average of 317 m2 of urbanized territory. In 2021, it went up by 19 m2, an area equivalent to one to two additional parking spaces for each inhabitant. --- “Urban sprawl contributes enormously to greenhouse gas emissions,” said Tsenkova. “It has an economic, environmental and social cost.” Instead of building new neighbourhoods, we should intensify those that already exist and add services and shops within walking distance, according to experts

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