Mapping point and line densities of cross-border governance: the example of the Interreg cooperation programme

Cross-border cooperation has become a key dimension of European integration, supported extensively through EU-Interreg programmes. Yet, the growing density of actors and interconnections creates methodological challenges for mapping and interpreting cross-border governance at the European scale. This article addresses the question of how point- and line-density approaches can represent cross-border governance structures using keep.eu data from Interreg V-A (2014–2020). Based on 5,618 projects and 17,929 partners, GIS-based kernel density methods are applied to compare partner concentrations and cooperation networks across Europe and in three case-study regions. The findings show that point density effectively represents the spatial concentration of actors, while line density better captures the directionality and intensity of cooperation axes, particularly in maritime and large-scale border regions. The study demonstrates that combining both approaches provides a more comprehensive understanding of European cross-border governance and supports evidence-based spatial development.