Street-network Sprawl in Izbat Abu Sir, Egypt

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.

Izbat Abu Sir: city in Ad Daqahliyah, Egypt

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 Izbat Abu Sir, Egypt on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Izbat Abu Sir as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 4.2, which is highly disconnected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are nan, 3.15, nan and 7.34. Data was not available in 1975 and 1991-2000.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Izbat Abu Sir spans a total of 26 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed prior to 1975. These roads have an SNDi of nan, 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 nan, 2.89, 3.58 and 4.2. Data was not available in 1975.

Izbat Abu Sir and Ad Daqahliyah 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 Ad Daqahliyah rose steadily.

How do development practices in Izbat Abu Sir fare in comparison to others in Ad Daqahliyah? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Izbat Abu Sir was the 3rd-most disconnected out of the 18 cities in Ad Daqahliyah. Izbat Abu Sir ranked 10th in 1976-1990 and 3rd in 2001-2014. There was no ranking in 1975 and 1991-2000 due to unavailable data.

Izbat Abu Sir and Egypt 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 Egypt followed a zig-zag trend with an overall increase.

How do development practices in Izbat Abu Sir fare in comparison to others in Egypt? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Izbat Abu Sir was the 16th-most disconnected out of the 170 cities in Egypt. Izbat Abu Sir ranked 71st in 1976-1990 and 16th in 2001-2014. There was no ranking in 1975 and 1991-2000 due to unavailable data.

Izbat Abu Sir and Ad Daqahliyah do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. There was not enough data from the city, while the SNDi of street constructions in Ad Daqahliyah rose steadily.

To date, Izbat Abu Sir is the 8th-most disconnected out of the 18 cities in Ad Daqahliyah. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in Ad Daqahliyah, the street network in Izbat Abu Sir has become more disconnected. Izbat Abu Sir ranked 10th in 1976-1990, 8th in 1991-2000 and 8th in 2001-2014. There was no ranking in 1975 due to unavailable data.

Izbat Abu Sir and Egypt do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. There was not enough data from the city, while the SNDi of street constructions in Egypt was at its lowest in 1976-1990.

To date, Izbat Abu Sir is the 60th-most disconnected out of the 170 cities in Egypt. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in Egypt, the street network in Izbat Abu Sir has become more disconnected. Izbat Abu Sir ranked 93rd in 1976-1990, 73rd in 1991-2000 and 60th in 2001-2014. There was no ranking in 1975 due to unavailable data.

As of 2015, Izbat Abu Sir had a built-up area of 2.8 square kilometers, and a population of 56705 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: