Linked Data Service: linking geodata
Linked data refers to using the Web to connect related data that were not previously linked. The data are identified, shared and referenced by Uniform Resource Identifier (URI). The Resource Description Framework (RDF) and the underlying standards like SPARQL are used to encode and link the data.
Description
RDF is a W3C standard enabling to formulate statements about Web resources. Resources are described via statements composed of a subject a predicate and an object, thus RDF statements are called triples. The subject and the predicate in a triple are usually URIs, while the object can be either an URI or a literal value. RDF triples are stored in a Triples Store and exposed via a so called SPARQL Endpoint.
The main benefits of this approach are:
- Data is given a context (the resources are semantically tagged)
- Data is linked
- Data is on the web (findable and reusable)
Query and browse the data
Data can be queried with SPARQL. SPARQL is the query language for RDF, the same way SQL is for relational databases.
The link to the SPARQL Endpoint of the Federal Spatial Data Infrastructure is below in «Further information». Example queries are available in the documentation of the SPARQL Endpoint.
ld.geo.admin.ch is the Linked Data interface of the Federal Spatial Data Infrastructure that acts as a frontend to the SPARQL: data can be browsed in HTML format with a standard web browser.
Example queries
- Top 5 populated municipalities
- Administrative units at point 7.43, 46.95
- Districts by Canton and Year
- All versions of a resource by URI
- Corresponding resources in Wikidata and Geonames (Municipalities)
Available datasets
The following datasets of the Federal Spatial Data Infrastructure are currently available as Linked Data:
| Title | Description |
|---|---|
| swissBOUNDARIES 3D | The administrative units and national boundaries of Switzerland and the Principality of Liechtenstein. Details |
| Public transport stops | Public transport stops in Switzerland, as well as other locations of operational or structural importance in public transportation (Operating points). Details |
| Generalized borders G1 | On the basis of the more precise boundaries set by the Directorate of Cadastral Surveying and the Federal Office of Topography, the FSO makes available annually updated (from 2001) digital municipal boundaries of Switzerland at various levels of generalization. The generalization level G1 is most appropriate for cartographic visualizations at a scale between 1:300'000 and 1:600'000. Details |
| Statistics on hydropower plants (WASTA) | The statistics on hydropower plants (WASTA) contain data concerning the Swiss hydropower plants with an output of at least 300 kW. This includes technical data relating to aspects such as power output and expected production levels. Details |
| Road traffic accidents | The data set of road accident locations describes the anonymized, localized individual data of road traffic accidents. Available data includes the type and severity of the accident, the time of the accident and the location and road type of the accident. The road accident locations are available throughout Switzerland in this model from 2011 onward. The data for a calendar year are available in the spring of the following year. However, individual digital data in various forms have been available since 1992. Details |
| Swiss National Forest Inventory | The Swiss National Forest Inventory (NFI) records the current state and the changes of the Swiss forest.Here are published: the protection forest regions, the production regions and the economic regions. Details |
| Official index of building addresses | Official data set for «Official index of building addresses», ID197, as per the catalogue of basic geodata in accordance with Swiss Federal Law. The official index of building addresses contains all the official and is therefore binding for public authorities in Switzerland. All buildings have to present one or more specific addresses. Residential buildings, workplaces and buildings of general public interest must appear in the official directory of building addresses. The Swiss Federal Register of Buildings and Dwellings (RBD) is creating the basis for the official record of building addresses. Details |
| Official index of streets | Official dataset for «official index of streets», ID196, as per the catalogue of basic geodata in accordance with Swiss Federal Law. The official index of streets includes all of the street names that have been officially declared in the Swiss Federal Register of Buildings and Dwellings (RBD). Responsibility for the completeness of the names in the official index of streets is governed by cantonal provisions. Details |
| Bathing water quality | Assessment of bathing water quality is carried out on the basis of cantonal water monitoring data relating to the hygienic parameters E. coli and intestinal enterococci (faecal bacteria). The EEA classification system applies to the quality assessment according to the EU Bathing Water Directive of 2006.The EEA classification can only be calculated on the basis of a series of measurements of at least four bathing seasons, with four samples per season. Details |