Universal scaling laws of collective human flow patterns in urban regions

This paper analyzes temporal changes in global human flow patterns in urban regions using mobile phone GPS data from nine large Japanese cities. By applying the concept of drainage basins, analogous to river flow, the researchers discovered several universal scaling relations. Notably, the number of moving people in a drainage basin of diameter L is proportional to L³ during the morning rush hour, contrasting with the intuitive expectation of proportionality to L². This three-dimensional feature is linked to the strong attraction of the city center and the presence of skyscrapers.

Yohei Shida, Hideki Takayasu, Shlomo Havlin, Misako Takayasu