[OSM-talk] What Streets are in what Places

[John Smith]

2009/11/13 Andrew Errington <a.errington at lancaster.ac.uk>:
> You could calculate node density (nodes/km2) and assume that node density
> will decay from the centre of a town to the edge.  This would work for the
> nodes in ways, since 'in town' will have more streets than 'out of town'.
> A rural area with winding roads might have an increased number of nodes
> (to get smooth curves) but it would have fewer roads.  You could also use
> POI density, on the assumption that there are more shops, hospitals, pubs
> and restaurants in a town, and the density drops off out of town.  Set a
> threshold, and mark the border between above threshold (in town) and below
> threshold (out of town).

Depending how far a settlement is from a city the denisty will vary greatly.

> Places like London would be tricky, as the node density would be high
> across the whole area, so maybe you can't pick out the individual towns.

There is also the problem of arbitary boundaries, not just geographical ones.