Digital modelling tools key to planning post-Covid infrastructure

“It is forecast that London public transport will have one-fifth of pre-lockdown capacity with social distancing,” said Autodesk infrastructure industry engagement lead Marek Suchocki. “There is also a push to move more people to walk or cycle with the government committing £2bn to support this.

“However, in order to effectively use the announced funding, it is vital that the planning procedures mature to exploit digital solutions for option identification, proposal review and stakeholder engagement. The current focus is to understand how public spaces can be re-opened to allow for safe physical distancing, managing the movement of people and effective air circulation.”

According to Suchocki, urban context modelling tools will need to be used more widely along with geospatial data and digital asset records to understand the implications of building new cycling and walking paths into roads.

“Civil engineers can use the context models as a basis to simulate traffic movements and forecast the impact of a 20% reduction in traffic if more people cycle,” he said. “Furthermore, they can explore options for adapting roadways to increase capacity for a cycling lane or pavement and again simulate the impact. The data collected can support them to make preferred option recommendations that provide the greatest benefit and minimise negative impact to road users.

“Similarly, while reduced services are running for public transport, now is the time to use data to look at mobility simulations of how people circulate a space, and what would happen if capacity was reduced, or pre-determined routes were implemented to enter and exit a station. The software could also simulate what would happen if the number of ticket barriers were reduced in the station or estimate the platform’s capacity needed to allow for 2m social distancing. In order to re-design the layout of the space, or limit access during peak times computational fluid dynamics simulation can also be used to simulate and understand airflow in a train station as well as impacts of potential emergencies.”

Suchocki urges civil engineers to look again at urban planning and how to design the city of the future by using new data sources.

“The announced track and trace app and mobile system may also provide an opportunity to collect anonymous data about people’s behaviour and the way they move within public spaces,” he said. “With these data points, we can further improve the use of our spaces and make them even more efficient and safe.

“It is certain that some things will return to normal [following lockdown], while others will change forever. We need to ensure we retain the beneficial changes from improved technology adoption to minimise the impact of a recession and exploit the opportunity these exceptional times present.”

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