Border Permeability Dataset

The Global Mobilities Project's Border Permeability Dataset contains, for 312 land borders globally, information on how permeable the border is in terms of cross-border transport infrastructure and potential controls via border checkpoints. Automatized computational methods combined with extensive manual checks were used to parse data from OpenStreetMap and the World Food Programme to detect cross-border transport infrastructure and checkpoints. Apart from various specifications of the overall border permeability index (BPI), the dataset also contains information on the amount of individual infrastructure types such as highways, cycleways, footpaths, railroads, etc. at land borders worldwide. Almost 40 different infrastructure types are covered.

Please cite as:

Deutschmann, E., L. Gabrielli & E. Recchi. 2023. Roads, Rails, and Checkpoints: Assessing the Permeability of Nation-State Borders Worldwide. World Development 164: 106175. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.worlddev.2022.106175