Street-network Sprawl in Tumed Right Banner, 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.

Tumed Right Banner: city in Nei Mongol, 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 Tumed Right Banner, China on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Tumed Right Banner as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 4.01, which is highly disconnected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 5.72, 3.35, 3.97 and 4.53. The disconnectivity of new streets constructed in Tumed Right Banner fell, then rose. In 1976-1990, new street layouts were the most connected.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Tumed Right Banner spans a total of 138 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed in 2001-2014. These roads have an SNDi of 4.53, 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 5.72, 3.43, 3.45 and 4.01. The SNDi of the aggregate street network in fell at first, but Tumed Right Banner has worsened in disconnectivity since 1990.

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

How do development practices in Tumed Right Banner fare in comparison to others in Nei Mongol? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Tumed Right Banner was the 4th-most disconnected out of the 45 cities in Nei Mongol. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Nei Mongol, street construction in Tumed Right Banner has become more connected. Tumed Right Banner ranked 2nd in 1975, 13th in 1976-1990, 5th in 1991-2000 and 4th in 2001-2014.

Tumed Right Banner and China do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi in Tumed Right Banner 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 Tumed Right Banner fare in comparison to others in China? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Tumed Right Banner was the 138th-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 Tumed Right Banner has become more connected. Tumed Right Banner ranked 30th in 1975, 238th in 1976-1990, 122nd in 1991-2000 and 138th in 2001-2014.

Tumed Right Banner and Nei Mongol do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in Tumed Right Banner was at its lowest in 1976-1990, while the SNDi of street constructions in Nei Mongol fell steadily.

To date, Tumed Right Banner is the 2nd-most disconnected out of the 45 cities in Nei Mongol. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has not changed. Tumed Right Banner ranked 2nd in 1975, 10th in 1976-1990, 10th in 1991-2000 and 2nd in 2001-2014.

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

To date, Tumed Right Banner is the 97th-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 Tumed Right Banner has become more connected. Tumed Right Banner ranked 30th in 1975, 186th in 1976-1990, 164th in 1991-2000 and 97th in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Tumed Right Banner had a built-up area of 4.62 square kilometers, and a population of 86707 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: