Visual exposure to buildings in Switzerland: spatial patterns and changes over six decades.

ABSTRACT: The visual presence of buildings in rural landscapes is a key yet often overlooked dimension of spatial development. This study presents a comprehensive visual exposure assessment of rural buildings, defined here as buildings located outside building zones, across Switzerland from 1960 to 2024, using binary and cumulative viewshed analyses. By integrating historical and contemporary building footprint datasets with digital height models and forest cover data, we quantify how visibility to buildings has evolved across five biogeographical regions. Results reveal a steady increase in visual exposure, primarily driven by construction in non-building zones, despite regulatory efforts to contain urban sprawl. The Plateau region exhibits the highest cumulative visibility due to its dense settlem

SUBMITTER: Moser A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12504572 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature