Street-network Sprawl in Serui Kota, 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.

Serui Kota: city in Papua, 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 Serui Kota, Indonesia on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Serui Kota as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 3.9, which is highly disconnected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 3.53, 4.22, 3.06 and 2.94. Street construction in Serui Kota increased in disconnectivity initially but has since improved. The streets constructed in 1976-1990 were the most disconnected.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Serui Kota spans a total of 53 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed in 1976-1990. These roads have an SNDi of 4.22, 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 3.53, 4.06, 4.01 and 3.9. The aggregate street network in Serui Kota increased in disconnectivity initially,but the trend has turned around after 1990.

Serui Kota and Papua do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi in Serui Kota peaked in 1976-1990, while the SNDi of street constructions in Papua followed a zig-zag trend with an overall increase.

How do development practices in Serui Kota fare in comparison to others in Papua? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Serui Kota was the 3rd-most disconnected out of the 16 cities in Papua. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in Papua, street construction in Serui Kota has become more disconnected. Serui Kota ranked 6th in 1975, 5th in 1976-1990, 2nd in 1991-2000 and 3rd in 2001-2014.

Serui Kota and Indonesia do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi in Serui Kota peaked in 1976-1990, while the SNDi of street constructions in Indonesia followed a zig-zag trend with an overall increase.

How do development practices in Serui Kota fare in comparison to others in Indonesia? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Serui Kota was the 221st-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 Serui Kota has become more connected. Serui Kota ranked 112th in 1975, 62nd in 1976-1990, 186th in 1991-2000 and 221st in 2001-2014.

Serui Kota and Papua do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in Serui Kota peaked in 1976-1990, while the SNDi of street constructions in Papua rose steadily.

To date, Serui Kota is the 6th-most disconnected out of the 16 cities in Papua. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has not changed. Serui Kota ranked 6th in 1975, 4th in 1976-1990, 4th in 1991-2000 and 6th in 2001-2014.

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

To date, Serui Kota is the 131st-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 Serui Kota has become more connected. Serui Kota ranked 112th in 1975, 97th in 1976-1990, 109th in 1991-2000 and 131st in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Serui Kota had a built-up area of 2.17 square kilometers, and a population of 88221 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: