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Map of Spain: the 114 isolated settlements of interest, with malls, IKEA and MediaMarkt stores, World Heritage sites and railways

The Lab · Smart Geoanalysis

Smart Regional - Spain

A countrywide GIS analysis that finds the Spanish towns most at risk of continued depopulation, and with the best chance of recovery through their abandoned railway lines.
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TYPE

Territorial analysis

LOCATION

Spain

SCOPE

8,112 settlements

RESULT

114 isolated towns

Mapping Isolation

LAIA built a GIS algorithm that maps the Spanish settlements that are becoming isolated yet still have room to grow. It filters the whole country in two steps, by size and by distance to the places where people shop. Each cross on the map below is one of the 114 settlements that pass both filters.
Fig. 01

Isolated settlements process

114 settlements in Spain with over 10,000 inhabitants that are increasingly isolated.

Reading the map

  • Settlement of interest
  • Mall (Carrefour, Hipercor)
  • IKEA
  • MediaMarkt
  • World Heritage site
  • Railway
  • Region of Alcañiz

Population

  • 3.26 million
  • 10,000
  • 5

Circles use a logarithmic scale.

8,112Settlements in Spain
750have more than 10,000 inhabitants, about 9%
114of those are more than 30 km from an IKEA, a MediaMarkt and a large mall

The two filters, from all of Spain to the 114 crosses on the map.

Fig. 02

Isolated settlements selection

The same settlements against the energy plants of each region, and the railway they could be reconnected to.

Settlements

  • Settlement of interest
  • Mall
  • IKEA
  • MediaMarkt
  • World Heritage site

Energy

  • Fossil energy plant
  • Clean energy plant

Network

  • Railway
Settlement distribution. Every settlement, scaled by population.
01
Settlement distributionEvery settlement, scaled by population.
Priority 1. Isolated towns, first group.
02
Priority 1Isolated towns, first group.
Priority 2. Isolated towns, second group.
03
Priority 2Isolated towns, second group.
Priority 3. Isolated towns, third group.
04
Priority 3Isolated towns, third group.
An Extractive Territory

Rural Spain produces most of the country's energy and food, but keeps little of the value. To show this, LAIA mapped the ratio of energy produced to inhabitants for every municipality, and separated fossil and clean energy plants.
Fig. 03

Extractive energy map

Energy produced per inhabitant in each municipality, with the plants that produce it.

Energy produced per inhabitant

  • 925%
  • 460%
  • 0%

Plants

  • Fossil energy
  • Clean energy
  • Incoming hydrogen
Energy per inhabitant. Darker municipalities produce more energy per person.
01
Energy per inhabitantDarker municipalities produce more energy per person.
Fossil energy plants. Where non-renewable energy is produced.
02
Fossil energy plantsWhere non-renewable energy is produced.
Clean energy plants. Where renewable energy is produced.
03
Clean energy plantsWhere renewable energy is produced.
74%Share of renewable energy expected in Spain by 2030
65%Share of renewable energy expected in Germany by 2030
Fig. 04

Germany as an example of rural development

The European Investment Bank has lent to Spain for less time than to Germany, but more money. Germany put most of it into industry; Spain put it into transport, which adds little access to rural Spain.

1. EIB lending by sector

  • Industry
  • Transport
  • Services
  • Energy
  • Urban development
  • Other, mostly credits

2. Railway network

  • Standard railway
  • High-speed railway
  • High-speed in progress

3. Rural GDP contribution

  • 10–20%
  • 5–10%
  • 1–5%

Germany EIB lending

€170.5 bnsince 1960
  • Industry 17%
  • Transport 9%
  • Services 7%
  • Energy 6%
  • Urban development 4%

Germany 48,500 km of railway

Germany: railway network, 48,500 km

Germany rural areas: over 50% of GDP

Germany: rural GDP contribution, over 50%

Spain EIB lending

€206.6 bnsince 1981
  • Transport 27%
  • Energy 11%
  • Industry 5%
  • Services 3%
  • Urban development 2%

The black arc: €11.2 bn invested in high-speed trains between 2000 and 2017.

Spain 21,900 km of railway

Spain: railway network, 21,900 km

Spain rural areas: 20–30% of GDP

Spain: rural GDP contribution, 20–30%

Railway by country

KmPer areaPer person1. China2. Spain3. Japan4. France5. Germany6. Sweden
  • Standard railway
  • High-speed railway

Ranked by kilometres of high-speed rail. Adjusted for area and population, Spain has the most high-speed rail of all six: about three times China's per square kilometre and five times per person.

Spanish decline in rural connectivity

After the Civil War, railway recovery focused on the main lines and left many rural lines aside. As car use grew, those lines lost their passengers and stopped paying for themselves. The result is over 7,000 km of abandoned railway. Germany has 48,500 km of railway against Spain's 21,900 km, in a smaller country.

Spanish decline in rural productivity

Rural areas contribute 20–30% of Spain's GDP, against over 50% in Germany. Spain's productive power is concentrated in its cities, which leaves room to develop rural areas and spread national wealth more evenly.

From the Map to a Town

The analysis gives a shortlist of towns where a restored railway, a logistics hub and new facilities can reverse decline. Alcañiz, in Aragón, ranked as one of the strongest cases and became the first proposal: Smart Regional - Alcañiz.
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Screen your sitesSmart Regional - Alcañiz