Explore key views

Discover opportunities and limitations with camera tools to study views from bird’s-eye to pedestrian level. Place cameras to look out of your design concept to see the views and work out the most desirable units. Use cutting edge tools, such as Zone of Theoretical Visibility (ZTV), to instantly see where your scheme can be viewed from.

Zone of Theoretical Visibility (ZTV), also known as a Zone of Visual Influence (ZVI) or Viewshed, instantly allows you to see where people can view your proposal from.

This incredibly advanced scoping tool will help save weeks of consideration for our users by eliminating unnecessary views and informing what views that are critical to assess.

When used in the early stage development, VU.CITY users can use this tool to quickly determine the visual impact of a building, then change its height or form and visually see the difference its impact has on the surrounding area in a matter of seconds.

In your words

"Historic England supports the use of digital planning tools such as VU.CITY in assessing changes to the historic environment. We regularly use VU.CITY to assist our negotiations with developers, and to support our planning advice, particularly regarding tall building proposals in London."
Charlotte Orrell
Senior Planner at Iceni Projects

Previously ZTVs were difficult and expensive to create, however, now with VU.CITY they are available to every user and can be run in seconds to instantly see the effect changes to a scheme will have. The ZTV tool can be used across all VU.CITY's 20 UK and international cities, that's over 2,600 sq km and growing fast.

The ZTV studies reflects 10 different height bands, with each colour identifying how much of the building you can see from any given location. Users can create studies up to 2,000 m² in distance to scope the impact of their schemes.

The ZTV tool has been built to help everyone involved in the design and planning process:


Townscape Consultants: The ZTV tool will be massively beneficial throughout the planning process by scoping views for consideration.

Architects: Can use ZTVs to help understand massing options, particularly with height analysis, giving a greater sense of feasibility on designs.

Planning Officers: ZTVs will be useful in helping agree the views required for planning.

Developers: Can use ZTVs to support justifications on a scheme being sensitive to its location. This will be especially useful when used in areas with many consented schemes by using the ZTV tool with the 'Consented Scheme Timeline' tool.

VU.CITY+ and Advanced ZTVs

The VU.CITY Platforms ZTV tool provides users with valuable scoping capabilities. However, if wider detail or greater accuracy is required the VU.CITY+ team are here to help.

To assist in the scoping of Verified views, VU.CITY can run ZTVs to a borough wide scale, both with and without trees. Varying definitions of colour for different aspects of a schemes height can also be customised.

If you would like to commission more accurate ZTVs over a wider geography get in touch - info@vu.city

How can we help

VU.CITY helps organise, visualise, and analyse city data in the clearest and most accessible way to make better decisions.

VU.CITY covers the whole of London and 25 major UK and international cities.

Quickly identify and appraise sites.  VU.CITY's visualization, design functionality and planning data, allow you to optimise your designs.

Transform design and planning

Now everyone involved can have a clear, universal understanding of what’s proposed and why, in a single, secure place. VU.CITY makes decision-making democratic and fair.

Build trust and collaboration

Remove barriers and minimise risks early. Have confidence in your designs and plans. Increase buy-in for project success.

Improve
outcomes
Test out ideas in situ, from one building to a masterplan. Create your vision and submissions with confidence.
Collate site information in one place
Communicate complex spatial arrangements
Make documentation stand up and stand out
Speed up planning conversations
Strengthen relationships
Create winning submissions
Discover where there is potential for change, and help everyone easily understand what’s involved and why.
Collate site information in one place
Communicate complex spatial arrangements
Speed up the planning process
Speed up planning conversations
Strengthen relationships
Create winning submissions
Reduce guesswork and unwanted costs – make the right decisions for the right outcomes, faster.
Appraise site capacity and viability, faster
Save time and costs through collaboration
Reduce planning uncertainties; increase buy-in
Speed up the planning process with better informed decisions
Sell or lease earlier to realise profits sooner
Understand designs and plans with ease, and make decisions with clarity to benefit your city and your communities.
Make the best possible decisions, quicker
Collate site, scheme and planning information in one place
Standardise decision-making
Have informed and transparent conversations
Improve how you consult on policies and plans
Understand the cumulative effects of planning changes