TERRAIN BASED PARAMETRIZATION OF ROMAN ROAD NETWORKS
Gspurning Josef · Acta Geobalcanica · 2020
Since the spatial turn and the associated reassessment of geographic information systems, transport and mobility optimizations in particular can be solved with the help of spatial analysis toolboxes such as Transportation Network Analysis (in vector cases) or the Least Cost Path approach (LCP, in raster cases).In addition to its almost universal applicability, especially the LCP method shows some often discussed weaknesses due to its independence from given path networks.In particular, the apparent conceptual simplicity of the method (reduction to a single controlling factor, impedance) makes the result highly dependent on the selection and parameterization of the influencing factors like costs, capability or terrain.This paper tries to overcome the disadvantages of this method by proposing a new way in the terrain based determination of impedance.Using the example of the ancient highway called Via Egnatia (historical transport route that once connected the Adriatic Sea with the Bosporus) the parameterization of the Roman route is analyzed.The crossing of the Balkans and the Dinaric Mountains with the necessary overcoming of relatively large differences in relief makes this route particularly suitable for the investigation of the relationship between relief and parameters of the real transport route.Special attention is given to the statistical analysis of the optimal sampling distances for the respective terrain types as a crucial point for the parameterization of impedance.