Local Government Use of Digital Twins for Planning Decisions

Abstract

Background: Recent developments involving digital twins have made implementation quality, oversight, and administrative capacity central policy concerns.

Objective: The analysis examined how policy relating to digital twins operated in practice and whether differences in capacity and oversight were associated with outcomes in relation to urban planning.

Methods: The study compared 14 jurisdictions or institutional settings using legal and policy documents, structured organizational evidence, and where relevant key-informant material. A common framework examined authority, coordination, transparency, procedural safeguards, enforcement, and implementation capacity.

Results: Variation in digital twins clustered into three identifiable patterns. The stronger cases paired clear mandates with formal coordination and accessible review, producing a 15% advantage in the composite implementation score. Delay and inconsistent enforcement were concentrated in settings with fragmented responsibility.

Conclusion: The results shift attention from whether rules on digital twins exist to how those rules are administered in practice. This means that public-sector AI rules are unlikely to be effective without operational capacity, transparent oversight, and clearly assigned responsibility.

Study design: comparative city study.

Publication history: Originally published in print on 15 June 2026, Volume 6, Article 13. Online abstract record added on 16 September 2026. Full-text PDF will be added when the digital galley is ready.