Street-network Sprawl in Port Said, 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.

Port Said: city in Bur Sa`id, 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 Port Said, Egypt on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Port Said as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 0.14, which is very well-connected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 1.03, 0.22, 0.41 and 0.11. Disconnectivity in street construction in Port Said follows a zig-zag trend. In 2001-2014, street construction was most disconnected, while construction was most connected in 1975.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Port Said spans a total of 379 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed in 2001-2014. These roads have an SNDi of 0.11, which is very 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 1.03, 0.25, 0.26 and 0.14. Disconnectivity in Port Said's street network follows a zig-zag trend. In 2001-2014, the city was most disconnected; while it was most connected in 1975.

Port Said and Bur Sa`id do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi in Port Said followed a zig-zag trend with an overall decrease, while the SNDi of street constructions in Bur Sa`id peaked in 1976-1990.

How do development practices in Port Said fare in comparison to others in Bur Sa`id? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Port Said was the 1st-most disconnected out of the 1 cities in Bur Sa`id. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has not changed. Port Said ranked 1st in 1975, 1st in 1976-1990, 1st in 1991-2000 and 1st in 2001-2014.

Port Said and Egypt follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi for both of these followed a zig-zag trend with an overall decrease.

How do development practices in Port Said fare in comparison to others in Egypt? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Port Said was the 87th-most disconnected out of the 170 cities in Egypt. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in Egypt, street construction in Port Said has become more disconnected. Port Said ranked 131st in 1975, 108th in 1976-1990, 67th in 1991-2000 and 87th in 2001-2014.

Port Said and Bur Sa`id do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in Port Said followed a zig-zag trend with an overall decrease, while the SNDi of street constructions in Bur Sa`id peaked in 1976-1990.

To date, Port Said is the 1st-most disconnected out of the 1 cities in Bur Sa`id. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has not changed. Port Said ranked 1st in 1975, 1st in 1976-1990, 1st in 1991-2000 and 1st in 2001-2014.

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

To date, Port Said is the 163rd-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 Port Said has become more connected. Port Said ranked 131st in 1975, 156th in 1976-1990, 157th in 1991-2000 and 163rd in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Port Said had a built-up area of 22.17 square kilometers, and a population of 646209 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: