Street-network Sprawl in Chibi, 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.

Chibi: city in Hubei, 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 Chibi, China on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Chibi as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 3.85, which is highly disconnected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 5.51, 2.11, 0.75 and 8.54. The disconnectivity of new streets constructed in Chibi fell, then rose. In 1991-2000, new street layouts were the most connected.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Chibi spans a total of 142 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed in 2001-2014. These roads have an SNDi of 8.54, 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 5.51, 3.9, 2.68 and 3.85. The SNDi of the aggregate street network in fell at first, but Chibi has worsened in disconnectivity since 2000.

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

How do development practices in Chibi fare in comparison to others in Hubei? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Chibi was the 1st-most disconnected out of the 80 cities in Hubei. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in Hubei, street construction in Chibi has become more disconnected. Chibi ranked 4th in 1975, 30th in 1976-1990, 49th in 1991-2000 and 1st in 2001-2014.

Chibi and China do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi in Chibi was at its lowest in 1991-2000, while the SNDi of street constructions in China followed a zig-zag trend with an overall decrease.

How do development practices in Chibi fare in comparison to others in China? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Chibi was the 11th-most disconnected out of the 1651 cities in China. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in China, street construction in Chibi has become more disconnected. Chibi ranked 35th in 1975, 613th in 1976-1990, 877th in 1991-2000 and 11th in 2001-2014.

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

To date, Chibi is the 8th-most disconnected out of the 80 cities in Hubei. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Hubei, the street network in Chibi has become more connected. Chibi ranked 4th in 1975, 5th in 1976-1990, 17th in 1991-2000 and 8th in 2001-2014.

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

To date, Chibi is the 117th-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 Chibi has become more connected. Chibi ranked 35th in 1975, 111th in 1976-1990, 368th in 1991-2000 and 117th in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Chibi had a built-up area of 7.06 square kilometers, and a population of 189166 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: