Street-network Sprawl in Bhagalpur, India

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.

Bhagalpur: city in Bihar, India

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 Bhagalpur, India on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Bhagalpur as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 3.39, which is highly disconnected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 1.75, 3.0, 5.53 and 10.01. In each period, new street development in Bhagalpur steadily grows more disconnected than in the last.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Bhagalpur spans a total of 214 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed in 1976-1990. These roads have an SNDi of 3.0, which is in the 40th to 60th percentile of disconnectedness.

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 1.75, 2.82, 3.2 and 3.39. Overall, the SNDi of the aggregate street network has risen: the street network in Bhagalpur has become more disconnected. This increase has slowed: between 1975 and 1976-1990, SNDi rose by 1.08 points, but between 1991-2000 and 2001-2014, it rose by just 0.18.

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

How do development practices in Bhagalpur fare in comparison to others in Bihar? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Bhagalpur was the 2nd-most disconnected out of the 120 cities in Bihar. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in Bihar, street construction in Bhagalpur has become more disconnected. Bhagalpur ranked 25th in 1975, 38th in 1976-1990, 7th in 1991-2000 and 2nd in 2001-2014.

Bhagalpur and India 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 Bhagalpur fare in comparison to others in India? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Bhagalpur was the 8th-most disconnected out of the 1716 cities in India. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in India, street construction in Bhagalpur has become more disconnected. Bhagalpur ranked 533rd in 1975, 444th in 1976-1990, 124th in 1991-2000 and 8th in 2001-2014.

Bhagalpur and Bihar follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi for both of these rose steadily.

To date, Bhagalpur is the 41st-most disconnected out of the 120 cities in Bihar. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Bihar, the street network in Bhagalpur has become more connected. Bhagalpur ranked 25th in 1975, 44th in 1976-1990, 38th in 1991-2000 and 41st in 2001-2014.

Bhagalpur and India follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi for both of these rose steadily.

To date, Bhagalpur is the 501st-most disconnected out of the 1716 cities in India. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in India, the street network in Bhagalpur has become more disconnected. Bhagalpur ranked 533rd in 1975, 503rd in 1976-1990, 473rd in 1991-2000 and 501st in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Bhagalpur had a built-up area of 21.04 square kilometers, and a population of 324049 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: