Street-network Sprawl in Desouk, 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.

Desouk: city in Kafr ash Shaykh, 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 Desouk, Egypt on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Desouk as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 0.91, which is relatively well-connected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 0.5, 1.1, 1.19 and 2.49. In each period, new street development in Desouk steadily grows more disconnected than in the last.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Desouk spans a total of 374 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed in 1976-1990. These roads have an SNDi of 1.1, which is relatively 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 0.5, 0.85, 0.85 and 0.91. Overall, the SNDi of the aggregate street network has risen: the street network in Desouk has become more disconnected. This increase has slowed: between 1975 and 1976-1990, SNDi rose by 0.35 points, but between 1991-2000 and 2001-2014, it rose by just 0.05.

Desouk and Kafr ash Shaykh follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi for both of these rose steadily.

How do development practices in Desouk fare in comparison to others in Kafr ash Shaykh? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Desouk was the 4th-most disconnected out of the 7 cities in Kafr ash Shaykh. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in Kafr ash Shaykh, street construction in Desouk has become more disconnected. Desouk ranked 6th in 1975, 6th in 1976-1990, 5th in 1991-2000 and 4th in 2001-2014.

Desouk and Egypt do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi in Desouk rose steadily, while the SNDi of street constructions in Egypt followed a zig-zag trend with an overall increase.

How do development practices in Desouk fare in comparison to others in Egypt? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Desouk was the 67th-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 Desouk has become more disconnected. Desouk ranked 141st in 1975, 98th in 1976-1990, 63rd in 1991-2000 and 67th in 2001-2014.

Desouk and Kafr ash Shaykh follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi for both of these rose steadily.

To date, Desouk is the 5th-most disconnected out of the 7 cities in Kafr ash Shaykh. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in Kafr ash Shaykh, the street network in Desouk has become more disconnected. Desouk ranked 6th in 1975, 6th in 1976-1990, 6th in 1991-2000 and 5th in 2001-2014.

Desouk and Egypt do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in Desouk rose steadily, while the SNDi of street constructions in Egypt was at its lowest in 1976-1990.

To date, Desouk is the 149th-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 Desouk has become more connected. Desouk ranked 141st in 1975, 146th in 1976-1990, 149th in 1991-2000 and 149th in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Desouk had a built-up area of 8.86 square kilometers, and a population of 263930 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: