Street-network Sprawl in Durgapur, 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.

Durgapur: city in West Bengal, 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 Durgapur, India on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Durgapur as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 3.63, which is highly disconnected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 3.52, 2.76, 4.38 and 3.91. Disconnectivity in street construction in Durgapur follows a zig-zag trend. In 1976-1990, street construction was most disconnected, while construction was most connected in 1991-2000.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Durgapur spans a total of 293 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed in 2001-2014. These roads have an SNDi of 3.91, 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 3.52, 3.05, 3.41 and 3.63. The SNDi of the aggregate street network in fell at first, but Durgapur has worsened in disconnectivity since 1990.

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

How do development practices in Durgapur fare in comparison to others in West Bengal? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Durgapur was the 17th-most disconnected out of the 80 cities in West Bengal. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in West Bengal, street construction in Durgapur has become more connected. Durgapur ranked 7th in 1975, 24th in 1976-1990, 12th in 1991-2000 and 17th in 2001-2014.

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

How do development practices in Durgapur fare in comparison to others in India? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Durgapur was the 465th-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 Durgapur has become more connected. Durgapur ranked 215th in 1975, 513th in 1976-1990, 274th in 1991-2000 and 465th in 2001-2014.

Durgapur and West Bengal do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in Durgapur was at its lowest in 1976-1990, while the SNDi of street constructions in West Bengal rose steadily.

To date, Durgapur is the 16th-most disconnected out of the 80 cities in West Bengal. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in West Bengal, the street network in Durgapur has become more connected. Durgapur ranked 7th in 1975, 20th in 1976-1990, 18th in 1991-2000 and 16th in 2001-2014.

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

To date, Durgapur is the 411th-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 Durgapur has become more connected. Durgapur ranked 215th in 1975, 435th in 1976-1990, 405th in 1991-2000 and 411th in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Durgapur had a built-up area of 11.14 square kilometers, and a population of 156654 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: