The level of street-network sprawl in new development in Balkh peaked in 1976-1990. To get a sense of how street development has changed in Balkh, we can consider three of its most populous cities: Mazar i sharif, Khwaja Iskandar and Mirzay. Out of the three cities, Mirzay does not follow the same trend as the region. The level of street-network sprawl in new development in Mirzay followed a zig-zag trend.

How do development practices in Balkh fare in comparison to others in Afghanistan? Most recently in 2006-2020, street construction in Balkh was the 7th-most disconnected out of the 28 regions in Afghanistan. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other regions in Afghanistan, street construction in Balkh has become more connected. Balkh ranked 5th in 1975, 8th in 1976-1990, 9th in 1991-2005 and 7th in 2006-2020.

As of 2020, the city with the most disconnected street network in Balkh is Khwaja Iskandar with an SNDi of 5.96, which is very sprawly. Conversely, the most connected city is Mazar i sharif with an SNDi of 2.41, which is well-connected. See trends for these cities: Mazar i sharif, Khwaja Iskandar

The level of street-network sprawl in the aggregate network in Balkh peaked in 1976-1990. To get a sense of how the aggregate street network has changed in Balkh, we can consider three of its most populous cities: Mazar i sharif, Khwaja Iskandar and Mirzay. Out of the three cities, Mirzay does not follow the same trend as the region. The level of street-network sprawl in the aggregate network in Mirzay followed a zig-zag trend.

To date, Balkh is the 3rd-most disconnected out of the 28 regions in Afghanistan. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other regions in Afghanistan, the street network in Balkh has become more disconnected. Balkh ranked 5th in 1975, 6th in 1976-1990, 4th in 1991-2005 and 3rd in 2006-2020.