Transcending the exemplars of utility and implementation in planning support science

In an increasingly urbanized world, there are pressures being placed on our cities to which planners, decision-makers and communities need to respond. Leading thinkers suggest a need for enhanced expertise in urban systems and call for additional and improved case studies as well as models for planning, management, policy development and decision-making. Planning support systems (PSS) offer demonstrated strengths in modelling and analysis of urban systems, communication of information and public engagement. However, in spite of the demonstrated need, a dominant thread in the planning support literature is the under-utilization and lack of implementation of systems and instruments. This chapter investigates the relevance of PSS to address urban problems in the twenty-first century by reviewing project-based use cases and the social context in which they take place. The review confirms the utility of PSS but finds that planning and governance are strongly dictated by a number of societal trends that are antithetical to effective and impactful PSS implementation.