Frequently Asked Questions
Who is this for?
The Cities Cost Model has a wide range of uses and can be used for both public and private sector clients. Some examples of the types of people include, but not limited to:
- Governments involved in long term planning of urban development
- Public sector organisations that are delivering infrastructure to support new development and expending existing settlements
- Global organisations such as the World Bank and European Bank for Reconstruction and Development who are promoting best practice urban development in the developing world
- Multi-national companies that require major supporting facilities to their industrial facilities
- Private developers and landowners who are considering major town or city-scale projects
More detail on some of the scenarios and how they might work can be found here.
I’m not a city planner, why is this useful to me?
The tool enables the relative impact of those items that influence the scale of capital investment to be considered at the feasibility stage. This includes the key question as to how density impacts on land requirements, infrastructure provision and hence cost.
With this high-level information, it can enable informed decisions to be taken at the feasibility stage on a suitable location for the new town or city.
What is the range of population the model covers?
The model currently considers a range of 50,000 up to 2,000,000. If you are considering something smaller or larger, then please get in touch as we have experts at all levels and the model can be adapted to suit schemes which are either below 50,000 or above 2,000,000. You can also view our recent garden communities cost model which looks at some of these elements on a smaller scale.
How to use the cost model:
Once you have authenticated the app you can start modelling your first city. If you have any problems authenticating please contact us. For more information on how to use the model please click here.
What does the model include?
Full details of what the model includes can be found here.
What does the cost model exclude?
Full details of what the model excludes can be found here.
How do I access the Cities Cost model?
Click here to access the online version of the Cities Cost Model. You can use any web browser to view the site on a PC or tablet, but the app is not formatted to work on mobile phones.
It is also available for use as a web app on IOS for use on an iPad. If you visit the site and click the share icon you can select “add to home screen” and the app will appear on the home screen like any other app you would download from the app store.
Do I have to have an internet connection? Can I use it offline?
The model can be installed as a web app for offline usage. To do this, please visit the site using the Google Chrome browser and click the three dots to the right-hand side of the window. You should see “Install AECOM – Cities Cost Model” in the list. Click this and the application will be installed into your Google Chrome webapps.
The app should then be available when you open a new tab or by visiting chrome://apps/. Once downloaded you are then able to copy the app anywhere onto your drive from there.
What is the license agreement for use?
Full details of our license agreement can be found here.