Street-network Sprawl in Thodupuzha, 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.

Thodupuzha: city in Kerala, 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 Thodupuzha, India on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Thodupuzha as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 3.02, which is in the 40th to 60th percentile of disconnectedness.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are nan, 3.22, 3.49 and 2.97. Data was not available in 1975.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Thodupuzha spans a total of 113 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed prior to 1975. These roads have an SNDi of nan, 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 nan, 3.22, 3.37 and 3.02. Data was not available in 1975.

Thodupuzha and Kerala 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 Kerala followed a zig-zag trend with an overall increase.

How do development practices in Thodupuzha fare in comparison to others in Kerala? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Thodupuzha was the 44th-most disconnected out of the 59 cities in Kerala. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Kerala, street construction in Thodupuzha has become more connected. Thodupuzha ranked 26th in 1976-1990, 34th in 1991-2000 and 44th in 2001-2014. There was no ranking in 1975 due to unavailable data.

Thodupuzha 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 Thodupuzha fare in comparison to others in India? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Thodupuzha was the 683rd-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 Thodupuzha has become more connected. Thodupuzha ranked 385th in 1976-1990, 443rd in 1991-2000 and 683rd in 2001-2014. There was no ranking in 1975 due to unavailable data.

Thodupuzha and Kerala do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. There was not enough data from the city, while the SNDi of street constructions in Kerala was at its lowest in 1976-1990.

To date, Thodupuzha is the 44th-most disconnected out of the 59 cities in Kerala. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Kerala, the street network in Thodupuzha has become more connected. Thodupuzha ranked 26th in 1976-1990, 30th in 1991-2000 and 44th in 2001-2014. There was no ranking in 1975 due to unavailable data.

Thodupuzha and India do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. There was not enough data from the city, while the SNDi of street constructions in India rose steadily.

To date, Thodupuzha is the 631st-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 Thodupuzha has become more connected. Thodupuzha ranked 383rd in 1976-1990, 419th in 1991-2000 and 631st in 2001-2014. There was no ranking in 1975 due to unavailable data.

As of 2015, Thodupuzha had a built-up area of 2.25 square kilometers, and a population of 210123 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: