Street-network Sprawl in Shkoder, Albania

What is Street-network sprawl?

Street-network Sprawl is a way to measure urban sprawl, worldwide, through the connectedness of the streets. Less sprawl means more connected, more walkable streets. Well-connected streets – like New York City’s grid – are more walkable and can be served by public transit.

The street network is permanent, and its connectivity affects the livability and environmental footprint of cities for decades and centuries to come. In places with more connected streets, residents drive less and walk more. A well-connected street network is associated with better outcomes for health, the environment, sustainable consumption, social integration, and equity.

We can quantify how connected street networks are with the Street Network Disconnectedness Index (SNDi).

SNDi -- our measure of street-network sprawl (disconnectedness)

The SNDi is a comprehensive measurement of “sprawl”. It captures:

A higher SNDi means less-connected streets – i.e., more sprawl. For the 10137 cities in our dataset, the average SNDi is 2.25, with half of the cities' SNDis falling between 1.08 and 3.25.

More information on the sprawl index can be found in these research papers:

To see the state of street-network sprawl across the globe, visit the sprawlmap.

Shkoder: city in Shkodër, Albania

What exactly constitutes the spatial extent of the city? For these aggregations, we used the Global Human Settlement Layer Urban Center Database (GHS-UCDB) to define the boundaries of the city. These cities -- or urban centers -- cover areas that are densely populated and built-up, and so may extend beyond the spatial borders of these cities that we may be familiar with. The GHS area is shaded in blue.

View Shkoder, Albania on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Shkoder as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 2.7, which is in the 40th to 60th percentile of disconnectedness.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 2.59, 3.43, nan and 3.62. Data was not available in 1991-2000.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Shkoder spans a total of 132 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed prior to 1975. These roads have an SNDi of 2.59, which is in the 40th to 60th percentile of disconnectedness.

Effect on the aggregate network: New construction in each period adds to the total stock of streets, but does not change streets that have already been built. Therefore, it has a limited effect on the street network as a whole. The SNDis of the aggregate street network in the respective time periods are 2.59, 2.7, 2.7 and 2.7. Overall, the SNDi of the aggregate street network has risen: the street network in Shkoder has become more disconnected. This increase has slowed: between 1975 and 1976-1990, SNDi rose by 0.1 points, but between 1991-2000 and 2001-2014, it rose by just 0.01.

Shkoder and Shkodër do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. There was not enough data from the city, while the SNDi of street constructions in Shkodër peaked in 1991-2000.

How do development practices in Shkoder fare in comparison to others in Shkodër? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Shkoder was the 1st-most disconnected out of the 1 cities in Shkodër. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has not changed. Shkoder ranked 1st in 1975, 1st in 1976-1990 and 1st in 2001-2014. There was no ranking in 1991-2000 due to unavailable data.

Shkoder and Albania do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. There was not enough data from the city, while the SNDi of street constructions in Albania was at its lowest in 1976-1990.

How do development practices in Shkoder fare in comparison to others in Albania? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Shkoder was the 6th-most disconnected out of the 6 cities in Albania. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has not changed. Shkoder ranked 4th in 1975, 4th in 1976-1990 and 6th in 2001-2014. There was no ranking in 1991-2000 due to unavailable data.

Shkoder and Shkodër do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in Shkoder rose steadily, while the SNDi of street constructions in Shkodër rose steadily.

To date, Shkoder is the 1st-most disconnected out of the 1 cities in Shkodër. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has not changed. Shkoder ranked 1st in 1975, 1st in 1976-1990, 1st in 1991-2000 and 1st in 2001-2014.

Shkoder and Albania do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in Shkoder rose steadily, while the SNDi of street constructions in Albania was at its lowest in 1976-1990.

To date, Shkoder is the 5th-most disconnected out of the 6 cities in Albania. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Albania, the street network in Shkoder has become more connected. Shkoder ranked 4th in 1975, 4th in 1976-1990, 5th in 1991-2000 and 5th in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Shkoder had a built-up area of 10.06 square kilometers, and a population of 83366 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: