Following the population of European urban areas in the last half century (1961-2011): the TRADEVE database

In this paper we present the methodological issues and choices related to the construction of the TRADEVE database, which allows following the population of European urban areas since 1961. Whereas most of the recent academic works related to this issue focus either on time depth (for larger cities) or on the large coverage of urban hierarchy (for a shorter period), one of the main interests of the TRADEVE database is to extend over a relatively long period (from 1961 to 2011) and to cover small and medium sized cities at the same time. But, above all, it distinguishes by taking into account the spatial expansion of urban areas during a period characterized by a pronounced sprawling process. First insights are provided that allow studying the hierarchical and regional expressions of urban growth slowing down during this period. A cluster analysis performed on the demographic trajectories of cities shows that 22% are decreasing, i.e. 870 out of the 3,930 considered in the database. Along with the paper, the TRADEVE database fully documented with metadata is available online in open access.