Street-network Sprawl in Kangra, 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.

Kangra: city in Himachal Pradesh, 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 Kangra, India on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Kangra as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 3.54, which is highly disconnected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 4.09, 2.23, 3.93 and 4.65. The disconnectivity of new streets constructed in Kangra fell, then rose. In 1976-1990, new street layouts were the most connected.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Kangra spans a total of 64 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed in 1991-2000. These roads have an SNDi of 3.93, which is highly disconnected.

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 4.09, 3.21, 3.54 and 3.54. Disconnectivity in Kangra's street network follows a zig-zag trend. In 1976-1990, the city was most disconnected; while it was most connected in 1975.

Kangra and Himachal Pradesh follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi for both of these was at its lowest in 1976-1990.

How do development practices in Kangra fare in comparison to others in Himachal Pradesh? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Kangra was the 5th-most disconnected out of the 10 cities in Himachal Pradesh. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Himachal Pradesh, street construction in Kangra has become more connected. Kangra ranked 2nd in 1975, 5th in 1976-1990, 6th in 1991-2000 and 5th in 2001-2014.

Kangra and India do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi in Kangra was at its lowest in 1976-1990, while the SNDi of street constructions in India rose steadily.

How do development practices in Kangra fare in comparison to others in India? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Kangra was the 310th-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 Kangra has become more connected. Kangra ranked 157th in 1975, 670th in 1976-1990, 346th in 1991-2000 and 310th in 2001-2014.

Kangra and Himachal Pradesh do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in Kangra followed a zig-zag trend with an overall decrease, while the SNDi of street constructions in Himachal Pradesh was at its lowest in 1991-2000.

To date, Kangra is the 6th-most disconnected out of the 10 cities in Himachal Pradesh. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Himachal Pradesh, the street network in Kangra has become more connected. Kangra ranked 2nd in 1975, 3rd in 1976-1990, 5th in 1991-2000 and 6th in 2001-2014.

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

To date, Kangra is the 456th-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 Kangra has become more connected. Kangra ranked 157th in 1975, 385th in 1976-1990, 360th in 1991-2000 and 456th in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Kangra had a built-up area of 0.94 square kilometers, and a population of 53566 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: