Platial at SKI Conference 2026

February 21, 2026

This past week, four members of the Lab attended the 9th Spatial Knowledge and Information Conference (SKI 2026), held in Banff, Alberta from February 19-22, 2026. The conference brought together researchers, industry professionals, and students from across Canada working in geospatial data science and closely related fields.

We were especially happy to have three lab members (Jenny Zhu, Mackenzie Johnston, and Daniel Romm) present their peer-reviewed research. Their selection for presentation at the conference highlights the interest in the variety of research taking place within our lab. A huge congratulations to Mackenzie Johnston on winning an “audience choice” award! Prof. McKenzie served as a General Chair and organizer of SKI again this year.

One of the conference’s most distinguishing features is its unique schedule: Sessions run from 2:45–9:00pm on Friday and Saturday, intentionally leaving mornings open for participants to explore Banff and enjoy snow activities (hence the conference acronym).

Overall, this year’s SKI was a blast. The conference once again showcased the breadth of Canada’s geospatial data science community, and we are already looking forward to SKI 2028.

Presentations:

3 Months of Discounts: Access to Shared Electric Scooters in Laval, Quebec
Jenny Zhu, Grant McKenzie, Kevin Manaugh (Session 1: Transport)
The Street Divided: Dynamic Space Consumption in New York City
Daniel Romm, Grant McKenzie (Session 4: Urban Environments)
Urban Green Space Change in Canadian Metropolitan Areas: A Landsat–Sentinel Assessment
Mackenzie Johnston, Grant McKenzie (Session 4: Urban Environments)

Qiang, Dan; McKenzie, Grant

How events move us: Estimating the causal effects of special events on shared micromobility Journal Article

In: Journal of Geovisualization and Spatial Analysis, vol. 10, iss. 1, 2025.

Abstract | Links | BibTeX

@article{nokey,

title = {How events move us: Estimating the causal effects of special events on shared micromobility},

author = {Dan Qiang and Grant McKenzie},

url = {http://grantmckenzie.com/academics/Qiang2025b.pdf},

doi = {10.1007/s41651-025-00244-1},

year  = {2025},

date = {2025-12-05},

urldate = {2025-12-05},

journal = {Journal of Geovisualization and Spatial Analysis},

volume = {10},

issue = {1},

publisher = {Springer},

abstract = {Special events, such as festivals, parades, and protests, can cause sudden surges or disruptions in travel demand, thereby placing stress on transportation systems. As shared micromobility becomes an increasingly important part of urban transportation, understanding how these events affect its ridership is crucial for ensuring safety, efficiency, and sustainability. In this study, we investigate the causal impacts of various event types by applying Double Machine Learning (DML) to high-resolution shared micromobility trip data (e-bikes and e-scooters) and multi-source event records in Washington, D.C. These events include government-authorized large events, independently organized small events, and government-registered protests. Our results show that many events have far stronger actual influences on shared micromobility than correlational analysis suggests, as confounding factors can mask their actual impact. For instance, festivals show four to seven times greater impact under causal estimation. We also find that the increase in gas prices suppresses discretionary travel, resulting in reduced shared micromobility usage during events. Another key insight is the different demand mechanisms: large events interact with temporal and built environment features to boost ridership, whereas small events are primarily influenced by temporal features, such as event duration and weather, with little influence from infrastructure factors. These findings highlight the need for tailored policies, including infrastructure investment for large events and operational incentives for smaller ones. This research provides a causal foundation for urban mobility planning, supporting the development of more resilient and efficient transportation systems in event-dense urban areas.},

keywords = {},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

Qiang, Dan; McKenzie, Grant

Mobility Vitality: Measuring urban vitality through active and micro-mobility modes. Proceedings Article

In: Proceedings of the 28th Association of Geographic Information Laboratories in Europe Conference (AGILE 2025), AGILE GIScience Series, 2025.

Abstract | Links | BibTeX

Romm, Daniel; Chavez, Jose Arturo Jasso; Kinman, Lexi; Salsabilian, Pegah; McKenzie, Grant; Manaugh, Kevin

The Cars are Going to be Alright: Examining Micromobility Infrastructure Space Allocation and Potential Improvement Scenarios in Montréal Journal Article

In: Journal of Cycling and Micromobility Research, no. 100071, 2025.

Abstract | Links | BibTeX

@article{Romm2025,

title = {The Cars are Going to be Alright: Examining Micromobility Infrastructure Space Allocation and Potential Improvement Scenarios in Montréal},

author = {Daniel Romm and Jose Arturo Jasso Chavez and Lexi Kinman and Pegah Salsabilian and Grant McKenzie and Kevin Manaugh},

doi = {10.1016/j.jcmr.2025.100071},

year  = {2025},

date = {2025-06-07},

urldate = {2025-06-03},

journal = {Journal of Cycling and Micromobility Research},

number = {100071},

abstract = {Many cities today are redesigning their streetscapes to redress the historical privilege afforded to the automobile in planning and policy. Much streetscape redesign is around transport infrastructure space, which largely prioritizes car travel and marginalizes other travel modes. Attempts by planners and policy makers to this end often are met with public opposition by advocates of the car, protesting about losing space on the street. This is empirically investigated with the case of Montréal by determining the allocation of street space to transport infrastructures, deriving measures of infrastructure space per traveller, and devising an Equal Infrastructure Allocation score to measure the imbalance between infrastructure provision per travel mode. Per borough, the distribution of transport infrastructure is examined, alongside correlations with demographic, socio-economic, land use, and crash rate variables. Potential scenarios of significant micromobility infrastructure improvement are modelled to test how infrastructure space apportionment per mode changes. This investigation discovers that even large improvements to micromobility infrastructure have a minor effect on space allocated to automobiles. Equal Infrastructure Allocation score and associated indicators are presented as useful tools for planners and policy makers implementing micromobility infrastructure projects, to better communicate with the public and address potential opposition.  },

keywords = {},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

McKenzie, Grant; Romm, Daniel; Féré, Clara; Balarezo, Maria Laura Guerrero

Gender differences in urban recreational running: A data-driven approach Journal Article

In: Journal of Transport Geography, vol. 124, no. 104171, 2025.

Abstract | Links | BibTeX