Street-network Sprawl in 拖船镇, 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.

拖船镇: city in Jiangxi, 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 拖船镇, China on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in 拖船镇 as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 2.56, which is in the 40th to 60th percentile of disconnectedness.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 4.16, 3.99, 2.35 and 1.91. In each period, new street development in 拖船镇 steadily grows more connected than in the last. This decrease has quickened: between 1975 and 1976-1990, SNDi fell by 0.17 points, but between 1991-2000 and 2001-2014, it fell by just 0.44.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in 拖船镇 spans a total of 156 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed in 2001-2014. These roads have an SNDi of 1.91, 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 4.16, 4.32, 3.47 and 2.56. The aggregate street network in 拖船镇 increased in disconnectivity initially,but the trend has turned around after 1990.

拖船镇 and Jiangxi do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi in 拖船镇 fell steadily, while the SNDi of street constructions in Jiangxi peaked in 1976-1990.

How do development practices in 拖船镇 fare in comparison to others in Jiangxi? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in 拖船镇 was the 35th-most disconnected out of the 74 cities in Jiangxi. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Jiangxi, street construction in 拖船镇 has become more connected. 拖船镇 ranked 3rd in 1975, 13th in 1976-1990, 22nd in 1991-2000 and 35th in 2001-2014.

拖船镇 and China do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi in 拖船镇 fell steadily, while the SNDi of street constructions in China followed a zig-zag trend with an overall decrease.

How do development practices in 拖船镇 fare in comparison to others in China? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in 拖船镇 was the 695th-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 拖船镇 has become more connected. 拖船镇 ranked 100th in 1975, 139th in 1976-1990, 390th in 1991-2000 and 695th in 2001-2014.

拖船镇 and Jiangxi follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi for both of these peaked in 1976-1990.

To date, 拖船镇 is the 21st-most disconnected out of the 74 cities in Jiangxi. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Jiangxi, the street network in 拖船镇 has become more connected. 拖船镇 ranked 3rd in 1975, 3rd in 1976-1990, 9th in 1991-2000 and 21st in 2001-2014.

拖船镇 and China follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi for both of these peaked in 1976-1990.

To date, 拖船镇 is the 448th-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 拖船镇 has become more connected. 拖船镇 ranked 100th in 1975, 75th in 1976-1990, 160th in 1991-2000 and 448th in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, 拖船镇 had a built-up area of 9.09 square kilometers, and a population of 167335 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: