Street-network Sprawl in Yucheng, 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.

Yucheng: city in Shandong, 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 Yucheng, China on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Yucheng as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 1.35, which is relatively well-connected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 2.43, 0.0, 2.32 and 2.59. The disconnectivity of new streets constructed in Yucheng fell, then rose. In 1976-1990, new street layouts were the most connected.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Yucheng spans a total of 110 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed in 2001-2014. These roads have an SNDi of 2.59, which is in the 40th to 60th percentile of disconnectedness.

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 2.43, 0.89, 1.05 and 1.35. The SNDi of the aggregate street network in fell at first, but Yucheng has worsened in disconnectivity since 1990.

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

How do development practices in Yucheng fare in comparison to others in Shandong? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Yucheng was the 12th-most disconnected out of the 113 cities in Shandong. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Shandong, street construction in Yucheng has become more connected. Yucheng ranked 10th in 1975, 87th in 1976-1990, 11th in 1991-2000 and 12th in 2001-2014.

Yucheng and China do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi in Yucheng 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 Yucheng fare in comparison to others in China? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Yucheng was the 488th-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 Yucheng has become more connected. Yucheng ranked 379th in 1975, 1363rd in 1976-1990, 399th in 1991-2000 and 488th in 2001-2014.

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

To date, Yucheng is the 38th-most disconnected out of the 113 cities in Shandong. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Shandong, the street network in Yucheng has become more connected. Yucheng ranked 10th in 1975, 55th in 1976-1990, 49th in 1991-2000 and 38th in 2001-2014.

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

To date, Yucheng is the 1038th-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 Yucheng has become more connected. Yucheng ranked 379th in 1975, 1185th in 1976-1990, 1129th in 1991-2000 and 1038th in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Yucheng had a built-up area of 26.95 square kilometers, and a population of 87709 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population:

For some related information about population, urban extent and density, and roads, visit the Atlas of Urban Expansion.