In the heart of Poland’s northeastern region, a battle is brewing—not with swords or words, but with land. The Łomża Functional Urban Area (FUA) is the stage for a conflict that’s as old as civilization itself: Not In My Backyard, or NIMBY. But this time, it’s not about a new highway or a power plant. It’s about a railway line, and the stakes are high for both the community and the energy sector.
Ada Wolny-Kucińska, a researcher from the University of Gdańsk, has developed an algorithm that could change the way we approach infrastructure projects in densely populated areas. Her work, published in the Journal of Transport and Land Use (translated as “Transport and Land Use”), focuses on assessing the scale of NIMBY responses for railway construction investments.
The problem is clear. “Railway projects can adversely affect property values, cause buyouts and expropriations, and introduce significant changes to a settlement’s spatial layout,” Wolny-Kucińska explains. This can lead to local resistance, delaying or even derailing projects. But her algorithm aims to change that.
The algorithm uses multicriteria spatial analysis to assess the feasibility of different infrastructure project variants. It’s a tool that could help developers and policymakers understand the potential for local resistance, allowing them to plan more effectively and minimize disruption.
The Łomża FUA case study is a perfect example. The project involves both the restoration of an existing railway line and the construction of a new one. The area is experiencing rapid suburbanization, with demographic shifts and patterns of land-use transformation adding to the complexity.
Wolny-Kucińska’s work highlights the importance of understanding these changes. “In suburbanizing areas, the intensity of NIMBY is strongly correlated with demographic shifts and patterns of land-use transformation,” she says. This understanding could be crucial for future developments in the field.
The implications for the energy sector are significant. As we transition to renewable energy, the need for infrastructure to transport that energy becomes ever more important. But these projects often face NIMBY opposition. Wolny-Kucińska’s algorithm could help navigate these challenges, ensuring that vital infrastructure projects can proceed with minimal disruption.
In the end, it’s about finding a balance. A balance between progress and preservation, between development and community. And with Wolny-Kucińska’s algorithm, we might just be able to find that balance.