Street-network Sprawl in Cilacap, Indonesia

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.

Cilacap: city in Jawa Tengah, Indonesia

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 Cilacap, Indonesia on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Cilacap as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 3.56, which is highly disconnected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 3.27, 3.6, 7.85 and 2.8. Street construction in Cilacap increased in disconnectivity initially but has since improved. The streets constructed in 1991-2000 were the most disconnected.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Cilacap spans a total of 410 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed in 1976-1990. These roads have an SNDi of 3.6, 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 3.27, 3.55, 3.57 and 3.56. The aggregate street network in Cilacap increased in disconnectivity initially,but the trend has turned around after 2000.

Cilacap and Jawa Tengah do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi in Cilacap peaked in 1991-2000, while the SNDi of street constructions in Jawa Tengah was at its lowest in 1976-1990.

How do development practices in Cilacap fare in comparison to others in Jawa Tengah? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Cilacap was the 16th-most disconnected out of the 34 cities in Jawa Tengah. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Jawa Tengah, street construction in Cilacap has become more connected. Cilacap ranked 2nd in 1975, 3rd in 1976-1990, 1st in 1991-2000 and 16th in 2001-2014.

Cilacap and Indonesia do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi in Cilacap peaked in 1991-2000, while the SNDi of street constructions in Indonesia followed a zig-zag trend with an overall increase.

How do development practices in Cilacap fare in comparison to others in Indonesia? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Cilacap was the 226th-most disconnected out of the 363 cities in Indonesia. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Indonesia, street construction in Cilacap has become more connected. Cilacap ranked 123rd in 1975, 89th in 1976-1990, 15th in 1991-2000 and 226th in 2001-2014.

Cilacap and Jawa Tengah do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in Cilacap peaked in 1991-2000, while the SNDi of street constructions in Jawa Tengah was at its lowest in 1976-1990.

To date, Cilacap is the 4th-most disconnected out of the 34 cities in Jawa Tengah. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Jawa Tengah, the street network in Cilacap has become more connected. Cilacap ranked 2nd in 1975, 3rd in 1976-1990, 3rd in 1991-2000 and 4th in 2001-2014.

Cilacap and Indonesia do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in Cilacap peaked in 1991-2000, while the SNDi of street constructions in Indonesia was at its lowest in 1976-1990.

To date, Cilacap is the 157th-most disconnected out of the 363 cities in Indonesia. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Indonesia, the street network in Cilacap has become more connected. Cilacap ranked 123rd in 1975, 135th in 1976-1990, 139th in 1991-2000 and 157th in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Cilacap had a built-up area of 36.22 square kilometers, and a population of 620238 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: