Journal profile · Engineering-Safety, Risk, Reliability and Quality
Urban Lifeline
ISSN 2731-9989 · Springer Nature · Singapore
Urban Lifeline: diamond open access (no APC); no APC; median 139 days to acceptance (53 articles, last 24 months); 22 articles in 2025; indexed in Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Urban Lifeline is published by Springer Nature. By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Traffic control and management, Infrastructure Maintenance and Monitoring and Seismic Performance and Analysis, together about 23.8% of its articles. Its main subfields are Civil and Structural Engineering. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Urban Lifeline provides a trans-disciplinary and holistic platform for the publication of cutting-edge research on novel theories, methodologies, applications and innovative technologies to enhance the sustainability, safety, resilience and intelligence of urban lifelines. Urban lifelines comprise interdependent infrastructure components, networks and systems. As the backbones of our societies, urban lifelines physically confront a myriad of challenges stemming from economic development, social wellbeing, environmental threats, climate change, and other natural and technical hazards. To address these global challenges, it is crucial to draw upon solutions from not only the conventional engineering disciplines but also from emerging technologies and their interactions with urban lifeline stakeholders and the general public. The Journal is committed to fostering the growth of a professional community of scholars and practitioners who are dedicated to advancing the science and engineering of urban lifelines. We strive to create a trans-disciplinary and holistic arena that transcends the current interdisciplinary boundaries for the global Urban Lifeline research communities. The Journal covers a broad scope encompassing multi-disciplinary aspects of urban lifeline systems, and is intended to foster research towards actionable insights for improving the sustainability, safety, resilience and intelligence of critical urban lifelines. It particularly focuses on synergetic integration of advanced digital technologies and information technologies in enhancing safety and improving the maintenance of urban lifelines. In addition, the Journal welcomes contributions with trans-disciplinary perspectives addressing pressing societal implications in urban communities. To this end, topics of interest include, but are not limited to: Urban lifelines and infrastructures as networked interdependent systems, smart-city methodology and solutions, resilience to extreme events, adaption to climate change, lifecycle assessment and management Urban structural and geotechnical engineering: lifeline structures (such as bridges, tunnels, subways, critical buildings and building stock), underground space and connectivity, pipeline networks, power transmission networks, and telecommunication infrastructures Transportation engineering and intelligent mobility: sustainable and resilient urban transportation systems, urban public transport systems, conventional urban logistics, intelligent
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Engineering-Safety, Risk, Reliability and Quality
Editor-in-chief Chee-Kiong SohPublisher website
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Traffic control and managementEngineering8.2%
- Infrastructure Maintenance and MonitoringEngineering8.2%
- Seismic Performance and AnalysisEngineering7.4%
- Geotechnical Engineering and Underground StructuresEngineering6.6%
- Structural Health Monitoring TechniquesEngineering5.7%
- Structural Integrity and Reliability AnalysisEngineering5.7%
- Autonomous Vehicle Technology and SafetyEngineering4.1%
- Water Systems and OptimizationEngineering4.1%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Not covered
Not covered by this edition.
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Not covered
Not covered by this edition.
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Not covered
Not covered by this edition.
CiteScore quartiles (Scopus, June 2026 release)
| Subject | Quartile | Rank | Percentile |
|---|---|---|---|
| Safety, Risk, Reliability and Quality | Q2 | 117/282 | 58th |
| Building and Construction | Q3 | 130/258 | 49th |
| Artificial Intelligence | Q3 | 295/570 | 48th |
| Civil and Structural Engineering | Q3 | 244/434 | 43rd |
Scopus ranks journals by CiteScore within each subject: the 75th percentile and above is Q1, then a quartile every 25 points. A different system from the CAS zones.LetPub
Database indexing
ScopusDOAJLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
CASPublisher website
Other: Google Scholar, EBSCO, ProQuest, Dimensions, CNKI, Baidu, Astrophysics Data System, Naver, OCLC, Portico, CLOCKSS
As the journal's website lists them, not checked against each database; for Web of Science editions the records above apply.
Editions, and major and minor categories, are shown separately and never merged into one zone; check which edition your institution uses before you submit or report.
Metrics
Impact metrics and publication volume
Impact
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 2.6LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher) 2025
- 2.6Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.42LetPub ·
- SJR (publisher) 2025
- 0.42Publisher website ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 0.78LetPub ·
- SNIP (publisher)
- 0.42Publisher website ·
- h-index
- 11OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 12OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 3.99OpenAlex ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 0%LetPub ·
Volume
- Downloads per year (publisher) 2025
- 59,300Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 79 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 25 | 25 | 197 |
| 2025 | 22 | 22 | 144 |
| 2024 | 22 | 22 | 13 |
| 2023 | 10 | 10 | 1 |
Sources count differently and were observed at different times, so each source's own value is kept; "publisher" marks figures from the journal's website.
Review & acceptance
Review time and acceptance
Review time from article dates manuscript dates registered with Crossref · to
139 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 88 days – 191 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 43 days (53 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 200 days
- Sample
- 53 articles with submission and acceptance dates (56 in the window); the latest was accepted on
Only articles that were accepted and published are counted, not the time spent on rejected manuscripts, so this usually runs longer than a publisher's "time to first decision".
Other sources
- Average review time (community reports)
- about 13 weeksLetPub ·
- Submission to first decision
- 17 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to publication (journal-reported)
- about 13 weeksDOAJ ·
- Peer review
- Single anonymous peer reviewDOAJ
Community reports come from authors' own submissions (confidence 0.5) and are not a promise from the journal; for publisher figures, the journal's own definitions apply.
Fees & open access
APC and open-access policy
Diamond open access (no APC)DOAJ
Every article is open access and authors pay no article processing charge.
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DOAJ | No APC | No | CC BY | |
| OpenAlex | USD 0 | — | — | |
| LetPub | No APC | No | — | |
| Publisher website | Yes, amount not published | — | — |
The journal's website is authoritative for fees; sources were observed at different times and each keeps its own value, without averaging.
Submission
Article types and submission policies (journal website)
Open calls for papers2, by deadline
Publisher websiteWhat to prepare4 items from the author guidelines
- Abstract
- 150–250 words
- Keywords
- ≥ 4
- Reference style
- Numbered, in order of citation
- Suggested reviewers
- Optional
Article types accepted6
- case studyUrban Lifeline accepts submissions of the following article types: Case StudyLength not stated
- editorialSingle-blind peer review This journal follows a single-blind reviewing procedure. This journal also publishes special/guest-edited issues. The peer review proce…Length not stated
- perspectiveUrban Lifeline accepts submissions of the following article types: Case StudyCase Studies report specific instances of interesting phenomena, providing relevant…Length not stated
- researchResearch Research articles publish full reports of data from research that have not been published previously and are not being considered for publication elsew…Length not stated
- research articleUrban Lifeline accepts submissions of the following article types: Case StudyCase Studies report specific instances of interesting phenomena, providing relevant…Length not stated
- reviewReview Review articles provide a comprehensive summary of research on a certain topic, a perspective on the state of the field and where it is heading.Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAI use, Authorship, Conflicts of interest, Data availability, Publication ethics, License & copyright, Open access, Peer review, Trial registration / reporting guidelines
- AI use Generative AI Images
LLMs do not satisfy authorship criteria; use must be documented in Methods Model summary
Please check Springer’s policy on generative AI images and make sure your work adheres to the principles described therein. Back to top
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Authorship Authorship principles
These guidelines describe authorship principles and good authorship practices to which prospective authors should adhere to. Authorship clarified The Journal and Publisher assume all authors agreed with the content and that all gave explicit consent to submit and that they obtained consent from the responsible authorities at the institute/organization where the work has been carried out, before th…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Conflicts of interest Competing Interests
Authors are requested to disclose interests that are directly or indirectly related to the work submitted for publication. Interests within the last 3 years of beginning the work (conducting the research and preparing the work for submission) should be reported. Interests outside the 3-year time frame must be disclosed if they could reasonably be perceived as influencing the submitted work. Disclo…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Data availability Data availability statements
Data availability statement required for all original research Model summary
All original research must include a data availability statement. This statement should explain how to access data supporting the results and analysis in the article, including links/citations to publicly archived datasets analysed or generated during the study. Please see our full policy here. If it is not possible to share research data publicly, for instance when individual privacy could be com…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Publication ethics
COPE member, follows COPE guidelines Model summary
This journal is committed to upholding the integrity of the scientific record. As a member of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) the journal will follow the COPE guidelines on how to deal with potential acts of misconduct.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- License & copyright Copyright
Articles in Springer Nature open access journals do not require transfer of copyright as the copyright remains with the author. Details of the OA licences offered to authors can be found on the individual journal website, in the journal's How to publish with us guide. Back to top
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Open access publishing
To find out more about publishing your work Open Access in Urban Lifeline, including information on fees, funding and licences, visit our Open access publishing page. Back to top
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Single-blind peer review
This journal follows a single-blind reviewing procedure. This journal also publishes special/guest-edited issues. The peer review process for these articles is the same as the peer review process of the journal in general. Additionally, if a guest editor authors an article in their issue/collection, they will not handle the peer review process.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Trial registration / reporting guidelines Clinical Trial Registration
The World Health Organization (WHO) definition of a clinical trial is "any research study that prospectively assigns human participants or groups of humans to one or more health-related interventions to evaluate the effects on health outcomes". The WHO defines health interventions as “A health intervention is an act performed for, with or on behalf of a person or population whose purpose is to ass…
Source ↗Publisher website ·
Excerpts are quoted from the journal's website; "model summary" lines are written by Workers AI and checked against the text. The journal's website is authoritative.
Profile
Publication details and official links
- Publisher
- Springer Nature
- Country or region
- Singapore
- Language
- English
- ISSN
- 2731-9989
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗LetPub
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Author guidelines ↗LetPub
- Aims & Scope ↗LetPub
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
- APC information ↗DOAJ
- Open access statement ↗DOAJ
- License & copyright ↗DOAJ
- Peer review process ↗LetPub
- Editorial board ↗LetPub
- Plagiarism policy ↗DOAJ
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Urban Lifeline
How long does peer review take at Urban Lifeline?
Based on the dates recorded on 53 articles published between November 2024 and November 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 139 days (interquartile range 88–191 days); authors report an average review time of about 13 weeks. Article statistics cover accepted papers only, publisher figures follow the journal's own definitions, and community reports come from authors' own submissions; none is a promise from the journal.
What are the manuscript requirements of Urban Lifeline?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: 150–250 words; Keywords: ≥ 4; Reference style: Numbered, in order of citation; Suggested reviewers: Optional. A model extracted these from the author guidelines and each was checked against the text; check the latest version on the journal's website before submitting.
Which databases index Urban Lifeline?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Urban Lifeline is indexed in Scopus and DOAJ. The journal's website also lists CAS; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is Urban Lifeline open access, and what is the APC?
Urban Lifeline is a diamond open-access journal (no APC). It charges no article processing charge.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, OpenAlex, Publisher website, DOAJ; every figure is tagged with its source and the date it was observed, and conflicting values are kept per source. LetPub source page: view ↗ (archived 2026-08-25). Last updated: .