Street-network Sprawl in Jardim Britânia, 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 Britânia: 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 Britânia, Brazil on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Jardim Britânia as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 4.64, which is highly disconnected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 4.18, 5.52, 4.34 and 6.71. Disconnectivity in street construction in Jardim Britânia follows a zig-zag trend. In 1975, street construction was most disconnected, while construction was most connected in 2001-2014.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Jardim Britânia spans a total of 148 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed prior to 1975. These roads have an SNDi of 4.18, 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, 4.64, 4.64 and 4.64. The aggregate street network in Jardim Britânia increased in disconnectivity initially,but the trend has turned around after 2000.

Jardim Britânia and São Paulo do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi in Jardim Britânia followed a zig-zag trend with an overall increase, while the SNDi of street constructions in São Paulo rose steadily.

How do development practices in Jardim Britânia fare in comparison to others in São Paulo? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Jardim Britânia was the 5th-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 Britânia has become more connected. Jardim Britânia ranked 3rd in 1975, 3rd in 1976-1990, 16th in 1991-2000 and 5th in 2001-2014.

Jardim Britânia and Brazil do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi in Jardim Britânia followed a zig-zag trend with an overall increase, while the SNDi of street constructions in Brazil rose steadily.

How do development practices in Jardim Britânia fare in comparison to others in Brazil? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Jardim Britânia was the 21st-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 Britânia has become more connected. Jardim Britânia ranked 13th in 1975, 12th in 1976-1990, 55th in 1991-2000 and 21st in 2001-2014.

Jardim Britânia and São Paulo do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in Jardim Britânia peaked in 1991-2000, while the SNDi of street constructions in São Paulo rose steadily.

To date, Jardim Britânia is the 2nd-most disconnected out of the 74 cities in São Paulo. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in São Paulo, the street network in Jardim Britânia has become more disconnected. Jardim Britânia ranked 3rd in 1975, 2nd in 1976-1990, 2nd in 1991-2000 and 2nd in 2001-2014.

Jardim Britânia and Brazil do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in Jardim Britânia peaked in 1991-2000, while the SNDi of street constructions in Brazil rose steadily.

To date, Jardim Britânia is the 12th-most disconnected out of the 348 cities in Brazil. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in Brazil, the street network in Jardim Britânia has become more disconnected. Jardim Britânia ranked 13th in 1975, 13th in 1976-1990, 12th in 1991-2000 and 12th in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Jardim Britânia had a built-up area of 4.03 square kilometers, and a population of 66037 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: