Impact of big data from BIM and GIS on smart urban futures

It is estimated that more than 70% of the world‟s population will live in urban areas by 2050. The implications and impact of such growth on natural resources, the economy, and ways of living in current cities are still being assessed as there is an urgent need to develop solutions that can support a sustainable growth. While the potential of big data on the development of solutions appears to be taken for granted, its clear application is yet to be explored in the context of cities governance and design. Urban and rural areas will be further examined, and their boundaries are inevitably to be diluted in the future providing for new ways of living, working, doing business and connecting. This paper will investigate the use of big data in smart urban futures by exploring the potential of information in support of ecological smart urban corridors development. Through a comprehensive literature review on existing data and information systems such as BIM and GIS and their integration, the paper will analyse the current role of Big data in planning and decision-making and smart cities design. The results will provide for a clear vision of present data use and potential application in the visualization and design of smart urban futures.