Street-network Sprawl in Mallawi, 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.

Mallawi: city in Al Minya, 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 Mallawi, Egypt on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Mallawi as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 5.82, which is highly disconnected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 5.82, 5.61, 4.17 and nan. Data was not available in 2001-2014.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Mallawi spans a total of 283 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed prior to 1975. These roads have an SNDi of 5.82, 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 5.82, 5.83, 5.82 and 5.82. Disconnectivity in Mallawi's street network follows a zig-zag trend. In 1975, the city was most disconnected; while it was most connected in 1976-1990.

Mallawi and Al Minya 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 Al Minya peaked in 1991-2000.

How do development practices in Mallawi fare in comparison to others in Al Minya? out of the 22 cities in Al Minya. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Al Minya, street construction in Mallawi has become more connected. Mallawi ranked 4th in 1975, 7th in 1976-1990 and 6th in 1991-2000. There was no ranking in 2001-2014 due to unavailable data.

Mallawi 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 Mallawi fare in comparison to others in Egypt? out of the 170 cities in Egypt. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Egypt, street construction in Mallawi has become more connected. Mallawi ranked 18th in 1975, 31st in 1976-1990 and 32nd in 1991-2000. There was no ranking in 2001-2014 due to unavailable data.

Mallawi and Al Minya do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in Mallawi followed a zig-zag trend with an overall increase, while the SNDi of street constructions in Al Minya rose steadily.

To date, Mallawi is the 5th-most disconnected out of the 22 cities in Al Minya. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Al Minya, the street network in Mallawi has become more connected. Mallawi ranked 4th in 1975, 5th in 1976-1990, 5th in 1991-2000 and 5th in 2001-2014.

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

To date, Mallawi is the 19th-most disconnected out of the 170 cities in Egypt. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Egypt, the street network in Mallawi has become more connected. Mallawi ranked 18th in 1975, 20th in 1976-1990, 20th in 1991-2000 and 19th in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Mallawi had a built-up area of 8.88 square kilometers, and a population of 342120 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: