Street-network Sprawl in Mayang, 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.

Mayang: city in Hunan, 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 Mayang, China on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Mayang as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 3.39, which is highly disconnected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 3.79, 3.41, nan and 2.63. Data was not available in 1991-2000.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Mayang spans a total of 68 kilometers. The period with the greatest volume of street construction was 1975. These roads have an SNDi of 3.79, 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 3.79, 3.64, 3.64 and 3.39. Overall, the SNDi of the aggregate street network has fallen: the street network in Mayang has become more connected. This decrease has quickened: between 1975 and 1976-1990, SNDi fell by 0.15 points, but between 1991-2000 and 2001-2014, it fell by just 0.25.

Mayang and Hunan 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 Hunan followed a zig-zag trend with an overall decrease.

How do development practices in Mayang fare in comparison to others in Hunan? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Mayang was the 29th-most disconnected out of the 95 cities in Hunan. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has not changed. Mayang ranked 14th in 1975, 14th in 1976-1990 and 29th in 2001-2014. There was no ranking in 1991-2000 due to unavailable data.

Mayang and China 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 China followed a zig-zag trend with an overall decrease.

How do development practices in Mayang fare in comparison to others in China? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Mayang was the 476th-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 Mayang has become more connected. Mayang ranked 123rd in 1975, 227th in 1976-1990 and 476th in 2001-2014. There was no ranking in 1991-2000 due to unavailable data.

Mayang and Hunan do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in Mayang fell steadily, while the SNDi of street constructions in Hunan peaked in 1976-1990.

To date, Mayang is the 11th-most disconnected out of the 95 cities in Hunan. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in Hunan, the street network in Mayang has become more disconnected. Mayang ranked 14th in 1975, 13th in 1976-1990, 11th in 1991-2000 and 11th in 2001-2014.

Mayang and China do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in Mayang fell steadily, while the SNDi of street constructions in China peaked in 1976-1990.

To date, Mayang is the 192nd-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 Mayang has become more connected. Mayang ranked 123rd in 1975, 150th in 1976-1990, 132nd in 1991-2000 and 192nd in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Mayang had a built-up area of 3.05 square kilometers, and a population of 62668 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: