Application of a Geographical Information System to the retrospective study of the accessibility. Catalunya, 1986-2001

The proliferation of computer applications relevant to planning, territorial management and digital cartography, and especially those known as «Geographical Information Systems» (GIS), has meant a revolution in the treatment and the analysis of spatial variables, including population. The present paper discusses the first results of research undertaken at the Centre d'Estudis Demogràfics using GIS techniques on the evolution of the accessibility of Catalan municipalities over the last fifteen years through the reconstruction of the road network. Thus, the aim of the present proposal is not only to show what the nature of this evolution and its territorial implications have been; but, above all, to show the methodology used to achieve these results, putting particular emphasis on the process of modeling Catalan territory, territorial population distribution and transport infrastructure during the period analyzed.