is_urban: Checks if a specified local authority is urban

In jkeirstead/decctools: Get Energy Data from the UK Dept of Energy and Climate Change

Description

Checks if a local authority is urban according to a user specified classification. See the details for more, well, detail.

Usage

is_urban(lad, urban = c("MU", "LU", "OU"))

Arguments

lad	a character vector a LAD ids (post-2011 format)
urban	a character vector specifying which of the above classifications to consider as a urban

Details

The urban classifications are described at http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/guide-method/geography/products/area-classifications/rural-urban-definition-and-la/rural-urban-local-authority–la–classification–england-/index.html and are summarized as follows:

• MU = Major Urban: districts with either 100,000 people or 50 per cent of their population in urban areas with a population of more than 750,000

• LU = Large Urban: districts with either 50,000 people or 50 per cent of their population in one of 17 urban areas with a population between 250,000 and 750,000

• OU = Other Urban: districts with fewer than 37,000 people or less than 26 per cent of their population in rural settlements and larger market towns

• SR = Significant Rural: districts with more than 37,000 people or more than 26 per cent of their population in rural settlements and larger market towns

• R50 = Rural-50: districts with at least 50 per cent but less than 80 per cent of their population in rural settlements and larger market towns

• Rural-80: districts with at least 80 per cent of their population in rural settlements and larger market towns

Unfortunately these classifications are only defined for England. For all other countries, assumptions have been made about which LAUs are urban (LU) or rural (SR) using the following data sources:

• Wales, http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/guide-method/geography/beginner-s-guide/administrative/wales/unitary-authorities/index.html

• Scotland, http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2004/06/19498/38788

• Northern Ireland, http://www.nisra.gov.uk/geography/default.asp10.htm

Value

a boolean vector of length(lad) indicating whether the corresponding local authority is urban

jkeirstead/decctools documentation built on May 19, 2019, 11:41 a.m.