Creating a dataset of historic roads in Sydney from scanned maps

Abstract

This study creates a historic dataset of road opening dates in Sydney. A method was developed for map digitization to extract spatial data from historic maps and place them in a collective vector layer. The method includes extensive georeferencing of the maps, as well as editing and cleaning the maps through raster and vector analysis. Preferred methods for map digitization used in the project were identified. For a considerable area of Sydney, in which approximately 52000 road links were included, almost half of the links were identified with an open date by the start of the twentieth century. A further half of these links were confined to opening within a thirty-year period. The project has established a strong foundation for a historic road dataset for Sydney. It has also outlined methods and procedures that can be followed to progress the dataset further.

The Spanish railway network, 1848–2023

“…Their production was often coordinated by various researchers and government entities, although on many occasions they were produced by a large number of different people (Perret et al ., 2015). Finally, and only very recently, there is a tendency towards the digitisation and use of historical maps through the application of artificial intelligence and various automated processes, although this method is still in its early stages (Turner et al , 2023).…”