Street-network Sprawl in Zhuhai, China

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.

Zhuhai: city in Guangdong, China

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 Zhuhai, China on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Zhuhai as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 1.31, which is relatively well-connected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 4.76, 0.83, 2.57 and 2.83. The disconnectivity of new streets constructed in Zhuhai fell, then rose. In 1976-1990, new street layouts were the most connected.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Zhuhai spans a total of 1756 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed in 1976-1990. These roads have an SNDi of 0.83, which is relatively well-connected.

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 4.76, 0.85, 1.0 and 1.31. The SNDi of the aggregate street network in fell at first, but Zhuhai has worsened in disconnectivity since 1990.

Zhuhai and Guangdong do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi in Zhuhai was at its lowest in 1976-1990, while the SNDi of street constructions in Guangdong was at its lowest in 1991-2000.

How do development practices in Zhuhai fare in comparison to others in Guangdong? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Zhuhai was the 36th-most disconnected out of the 109 cities in Guangdong. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Guangdong, street construction in Zhuhai has become more connected. Zhuhai ranked 13th in 1975, 88th in 1976-1990, 23rd in 1991-2000 and 36th in 2001-2014.

Zhuhai and China do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi in Zhuhai was at its lowest in 1976-1990, while the SNDi of street constructions in China followed a zig-zag trend with an overall decrease.

How do development practices in Zhuhai fare in comparison to others in China? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Zhuhai was the 424th-most disconnected out of the 1651 cities in China. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in China, street construction in Zhuhai has become more connected. Zhuhai ranked 66th in 1975, 1123rd in 1976-1990, 329th in 1991-2000 and 424th in 2001-2014.

Zhuhai and Guangdong do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in Zhuhai was at its lowest in 1976-1990, while the SNDi of street constructions in Guangdong was at its lowest in 1991-2000.

To date, Zhuhai is the 83rd-most disconnected out of the 109 cities in Guangdong. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Guangdong, the street network in Zhuhai has become more connected. Zhuhai ranked 13th in 1975, 93rd in 1976-1990, 91st in 1991-2000 and 83rd in 2001-2014.

Zhuhai and China do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in Zhuhai was at its lowest in 1976-1990, while the SNDi of street constructions in China peaked in 1976-1990.

To date, Zhuhai is the 1058th-most disconnected out of the 1651 cities in China. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in China, the street network in Zhuhai has become more connected. Zhuhai ranked 66th in 1975, 1206th in 1976-1990, 1150th in 1991-2000 and 1058th in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Zhuhai had a built-up area of 101.14 square kilometers, and a population of 1856282 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: