Time-space complexity and the opening hours of commerce: a study of four European cities

The aim of this article is to develop the concept of time-space complexity as a way of discussing how territorial time-space production affects urban life and use. The discussion is based on a comparative study of opening hours in four centrally located European retail areas: Angers, Lisbon, Malmö and Porto. Following a comparative study of these areas, we discuss tendencies of temporal and spatial homogenisation, the production of ever-more distinctive time-spaces, and also initiate a discussion on the trend of city á la carte. Finally we argue that discussions of time-space complexity need to be taken more seriously in research on urban development, and that the issue of spatio-temporal homogenisation need to be handled more actively in urban planning and design.