Recent Developments in Land-use Modelling : a Review of British Research

Perhaps the most fundamental of all the changes in the recent history of the social sciences is concerned with methodology . No longer content merely to provide speculative hypotheses of the social order, social scientists have begun to test theory using the methods of the experimental sciences, and furthermore, the logic of mathematics is being increasingly used to explore the implications of social and economic hypotheses . The art and science of town and regional planning has not escaped the impact of this revolution. Indeed, the introduction of more rigorous techniques for investigating the problems of the environment and the spatial structure of towns and regions has led to considerable confusion among planners as to the validity and usefulness of such innovations, and it will necessarily take time before these new approaches can be thoroughly digested and absorbed into the main body of planning practice . One facet of this revolution, in approach, involves the development of mathematical models which attempt to simulate the structure of land uses and activities in towns and regions . There have been so many advances in this area in the last decade that it is sometimes difficult to see the interrelationships between various efforts, and some review of the field appears necessary . Therefore, this paper sets out with the intention of bringing together some of the more recent developments in landuse modelling in Britain so that the structure and