Street-network Sprawl in Wukro, Ethiopia

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.

Wukro: city in Tigray, Ethiopia

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 Wukro, Ethiopia on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Wukro as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 0.39, which is very well-connected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 0.55, nan, 0.36 and -0.04. Data was not available in 1976-1990.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Wukro spans a total of 82 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed prior to 1975. These roads have an SNDi of 0.55, 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 0.55, 0.52, 0.5 and 0.39. Overall, the SNDi of the aggregate street network has fallen: the street network in Wukro has become more connected. This decrease has quickened: between 1975 and 1976-1990, SNDi fell by 0.03 points, but between 1991-2000 and 2001-2014, it fell by just 0.11.

Wukro and Tigray 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 Tigray followed a zig-zag trend with an overall decrease.

How do development practices in Wukro fare in comparison to others in Tigray? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Wukro was the 12th-most disconnected out of the 15 cities in Tigray. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Tigray, street construction in Wukro has become more connected. Wukro ranked 5th in 1975, 9th in 1991-2000 and 12th in 2001-2014. There was no ranking in 1976-1990 due to unavailable data.

Wukro and Ethiopia 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 Ethiopia followed a zig-zag trend with an overall increase.

How do development practices in Wukro fare in comparison to others in Ethiopia? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Wukro was the 199th-most disconnected out of the 252 cities in Ethiopia. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Ethiopia, street construction in Wukro has become more connected. Wukro ranked 15th in 1975, 80th in 1991-2000 and 199th in 2001-2014. There was no ranking in 1976-1990 due to unavailable data.

Wukro and Tigray follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi for both of these fell steadily.

To date, Wukro is the 14th-most disconnected out of the 15 cities in Tigray. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Tigray, the street network in Wukro has become more connected. Wukro ranked 5th in 1975, 8th in 1976-1990, 9th in 1991-2000 and 14th in 2001-2014.

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

To date, Wukro is the 194th-most disconnected out of the 252 cities in Ethiopia. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Ethiopia, the street network in Wukro has become more connected. Wukro ranked 15th in 1975, 50th in 1976-1990, 90th in 1991-2000 and 194th in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Wukro had a built-up area of 0.68 square kilometers, and a population of 62434 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: