Street-network Sprawl in Porbandar, 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.

Porbandar: city in Gujarat, 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 Porbandar, India on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Porbandar as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 1.95, which is relatively well-connected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 1.84, 2.45, nan and 5.8. Data was not available in 1991-2000.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Porbandar spans a total of 286 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed prior to 1975. These roads have an SNDi of 1.84, 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 1.84, 1.87, 1.87 and 1.95. Disconnectivity in Porbandar's street network follows a zig-zag trend. In 1975, the city was most disconnected; while it was most connected in 2001-2014.

Porbandar and Gujarat 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 Gujarat was at its lowest in 1976-1990.

How do development practices in Porbandar fare in comparison to others in Gujarat? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Porbandar was the 6th-most disconnected out of the 108 cities in Gujarat. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in Gujarat, street construction in Porbandar has become more disconnected. Porbandar ranked 33rd in 1975, 26th in 1976-1990 and 6th in 2001-2014. There was no ranking in 1991-2000 due to unavailable data.

Porbandar 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 Porbandar fare in comparison to others in India? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Porbandar was the 135th-most disconnected out of the 1716 cities in India. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in India, street construction in Porbandar has become more connected. Porbandar ranked 518th in 1975, 603rd in 1976-1990 and 135th in 2001-2014. There was no ranking in 1991-2000 due to unavailable data.

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

To date, Porbandar is the 48th-most disconnected out of the 108 cities in Gujarat. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Gujarat, the street network in Porbandar has become more connected. Porbandar ranked 33rd in 1975, 37th in 1976-1990, 41st in 1991-2000 and 48th in 2001-2014.

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

To date, Porbandar is the 1039th-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 Porbandar has become more connected. Porbandar ranked 518th in 1975, 816th in 1976-1990, 932nd in 1991-2000 and 1039th in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Porbandar had a built-up area of 10.46 square kilometers, and a population of 287936 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: