The estimation of non-resident populations has been a long standing problem in demography. Estimates which capture the rise and fall of populations are needed for a range of purposes, including the physical planning of our urban spaces, the provision of goods and services, emergency response and policy formulation. The demand for these estimates has been largely unmet due to a lack of suitable data at an appropriate spatial and temporal resolution. In the past decade, however, a range of digitally derived data has begun to emerge as a potential source for the estimation of temporary populations (Ahas 2007). This paper explores the utility of data derived from Google Places’ 'popular times' to generate place-based estimates of the rise and fall of populations for defined urban nodes. We describe the collection procedure using the Google Places API, before reporting the results of a validation exercise at the University of Queensland, Australia. We conclude by outlining the pathways to augment this pilot study to larger scale dynamic temporary population modelling using place-based digital signatures.

Since 2011, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) has rapidly ascended to become Australia’s top non-Commonwealth migrants-sending country. The PRC-born migrants in Australia exhibit increasing residential mobility at different spatial scales. According to the spatial segmented assimilation theory, the integration trajectory of the same ethnic group in alternate locations may be different, making the observed shift of settlement geography an indicator of segmented paths. The in- and out-immigration altering the spatial patterns of ethnic concentrations is a key reflection of the immigrants’ incorporation into the host society. Drawing on the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) Census data in 2001, 2006 and 2011 and the data from a primary survey, this paper examines the residential mobility of PRC-born migrants at four spatial scales: cross-states, cross-metropolis, within-metropolis and cross-neighbourhood. The key findings show that PRC-born migrants become more diverse on choosing their destination cities since 2001 and most of their mobility occurred within metropolis; cross-metropolis mobility is more obvious to obverse in medium-size capital cities; cross-neighbourhood mobility happened partially within high concentrations of PRC-born migrants. The segmented pathways witnessed by the PRC-born migrants provide empirical validation for the spatial segmented assimilation to explain how they integrate to the Australian society.

The spatial accessibility of fire stations to calls for emergency service is a key contributor to help minimise property losses and reduce injuries and death. Spatial accessibility to urban fire services however has attracted little attention despite its potential to inform future fire service policy and planning for fire stations. Drawing on small area population forecasts, fire stations locations and the road network data, this paper employs an enhanced two-step floating catchment analysis method to compute geographic accessibility to fire services in relation to population forecasts for Brisbane, Australia. Results show that spatial accessibility to fire services over the period to 2036 is more likely to reduce in response to demand variability. A lower level of fire service accessibility exists in the most populated areas compared to areas that are least populated. The potential fire station sites in relation to inaccessible areas are identified which inform future fire service policy and operational planning to proactively adjust to future demand for services from the growing population in the region.