2026

Geography of Transports and Communications

Name: Geography of Transports and Communications
Code: PAO15314L
3 ECTS
Duration: 15 weeks/78 hours
Scientific Area: Geography

Teaching languages: Portuguese
Languages of tutoring support: Portuguese

Sustainable Development Goals

Learning Goals

This curricular unit seeks to introduce students to the geography of transport and communications, focusing on the importance of railways in the organization and development of the territory, as well as transformations in terms of mobility.

Contents

1. Introduction to the CU: Transport, Communications and Geography
2. History of railway networks in the Iberian peninsula
3. Railways as an element of territorial development
4. Challenges and problems in promoting railway networks in Portugal
5. Group work presentation #1
6. Introduction to data collection methodologies
7. Territorial planning, regulations and communication networks
8. Spatial analysis - GIS
9. Group work presentation #2
10. Design of methodologies for the diagnosis of transport and communications
11. Qualitative data collection: theories and tools
12. Field visit: place to be defined
13. Group work presentation #3
14. Future scenarios: theories and possibilities
15. Final presentation of group #4

Teaching Methods

This subject will be taught by a teacher with training in human geography (environmental and landscape planning) and by a diverse group of guest speakers, specialists of recognized merit in the area of transport and communications, who will provide the thematic sessions. In this way, students can be offered a plurality of perspectives that enrich their educational process. In addition to two individual theoretical-practical tests, students will have to prepare a portfolio consisting of three individual reflections and practical group work. The importance that seminars have in this discipline arises from the need to demonstrate to students that this is one of the scientific areas of geography that has a more evident applied and practical component. The seminars are expected to bring a diverse range of speakers, with different professional experiences and institutional frameworks, thus stimulating the intellectual curiosity of students.

Assessment

Continuous assessment
- Group projects + final presentation (45%+20%)
- Two individual exercises (15% each exercise) (Exercise 1: Quantitative, graphic and cartographic methods. Exercise 2: Qualitative, argumentative and results dissemination methods)
- Participation and attendance (5%)
Note: approval requires mandatory attendance in 75% of classes, including 100% of project classes, except for admissible justification.
Any plagiarism that is detected in the work delivered, from work by other authors or from CHATGTP or other text production support using artificial intelligence, results in the classification of zero values in the work in question and in the impossibility of presenting further evaluation elements in the Unit Curriculum.