Street-network Sprawl in Mirganj, India

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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:

• nodal degree
• dendricity, the tree-likeness of the street network
• circuity, the ratio of the distance by road to the straight-line distance of two locations on the street network
• sinuosity, the curviness of a street

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:

• Global trends toward urban street-network sprawl
• A global assessment of street-network sprawl

To see the state of street-network sprawl across the globe, visit the sprawlmap.

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Mirganj: 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 Mirganj, India on the sprawlmap

How have Mirganj's street networks changed over time?

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Mirganj as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is -1.13, which is very well-connected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are -1.92, nan, -1.69 and nan. Data was not available in 1976-1990 and 2001-2014.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Mirganj spans a total of 65 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed in 1991-2000. These roads have an SNDi of -1.69, 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 -1.92, -1.69, -1.52 and -1.13. Overall, the SNDi of the aggregate street network has risen: the street network in Mirganj has become more disconnected.

Mirganj in context: Street-network sprawl of new development

Mirganj and Bihar 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 Bihar followed a zig-zag trend with an overall increase.

How do development practices in Mirganj fare in comparison to others in Bihar? out of the 120 cities in Bihar. Mirganj ranked 43rd in 1975 and 50th in 1991-2000. There was no ranking in 1976-1990 and 2001-2014 due to unavailable data.

Mirganj and India 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 India rose steadily.

How do development practices in Mirganj fare in comparison to others in India? out of the 1716 cities in India. Mirganj ranked 881st in 1975 and 1054th in 1991-2000. There was no ranking in 1976-1990 and 2001-2014 due to unavailable data.

Mirganj in context: Aggregate street-network sprawl

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

To date, Mirganj is the 114th-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 Mirganj has become more connected. Mirganj ranked 43rd in 1975, 98th in 1976-1990, 106th in 1991-2000 and 114th in 2001-2014.

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

To date, Mirganj is the 1651st-most disconnected out of the 1716 cities in India. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in India, the street network in Mirganj has become more connected. Mirganj ranked 881st in 1975, 1407th in 1976-1990, 1536th in 1991-2000 and 1651st in 2001-2014.

What about other similarly-populated cities?

As of 2015, Mirganj had a built-up area of 1.23 square kilometers, and a population of 277143 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population:

• Porlamar, Venezuela
• Limeira, Brazil
• Basirhat, India