Street-network Sprawl in Jardim Alice, Brazil

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.

Jardim Alice: city in São Paulo, Brazil

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 Jardim Alice, Brazil on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Jardim Alice as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 4.25, which is highly disconnected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 4.18, 4.09, 4.72 and 5.51. The disconnectivity of new streets constructed in Jardim Alice fell, then rose. In 1976-1990, new street layouts were the most connected.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Jardim Alice spans a total of 179 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed in 1976-1990. These roads have an SNDi of 4.09, which is highly disconnected.

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 4.18, 4.11, 4.15 and 4.25. The SNDi of the aggregate street network in fell at first, but Jardim Alice has worsened in disconnectivity since 1990.

Jardim Alice and São Paulo do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi in Jardim Alice was at its lowest in 1976-1990, while the SNDi of street constructions in São Paulo rose steadily.

How do development practices in Jardim Alice fare in comparison to others in São Paulo? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Jardim Alice was the 15th-most disconnected out of the 74 cities in São Paulo. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in São Paulo, street construction in Jardim Alice has become more connected. Jardim Alice ranked 2nd in 1975, 12th in 1976-1990, 12th in 1991-2000 and 15th in 2001-2014.

Jardim Alice and Brazil do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi in Jardim Alice was at its lowest in 1976-1990, while the SNDi of street constructions in Brazil rose steadily.

How do development practices in Jardim Alice fare in comparison to others in Brazil? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Jardim Alice was the 50th-most disconnected out of the 348 cities in Brazil. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Brazil, street construction in Jardim Alice has become more connected. Jardim Alice ranked 12th in 1975, 32nd in 1976-1990, 43rd in 1991-2000 and 50th in 2001-2014.

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

To date, Jardim Alice is the 4th-most disconnected out of the 74 cities in São Paulo. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in São Paulo, the street network in Jardim Alice has become more connected. Jardim Alice ranked 2nd in 1975, 4th in 1976-1990, 4th in 1991-2000 and 4th in 2001-2014.

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

To date, Jardim Alice is the 18th-most disconnected out of the 348 cities in Brazil. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Brazil, the street network in Jardim Alice has become more connected. Jardim Alice ranked 12th in 1975, 17th in 1976-1990, 17th in 1991-2000 and 18th in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Jardim Alice had a built-up area of 4.42 square kilometers, and a population of 54759 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: