Implications of a Spatial Multicriteria Decision Analysis for Urban Development in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

Abstract

New technology has provided new tools for effective spatial planning. Through the example of locating suitable sites for urban development in Ulaanbaatar, this paper illustrates how multicriteria decision analysis and geographical information systems can be used for more effective urban planning. Several constraint and factor criteria were identified, transformed into map layers, and weighted together using the analytic hierarchy process. Besides localization results, this study shows the effect of using poor elevation data and how a sensitivity analysis can be applied to yield further information, spot weighting weaknesses, and assess the quality of the criteria.