Street-network Sprawl in Taluk Kuantan, 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.

Taluk Kuantan: city in Riau, 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 Taluk Kuantan, Indonesia on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Taluk Kuantan as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 0.73, which is relatively well-connected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 0.44, nan, 1.08 and 0.71. Data was not available in 1976-1990.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Taluk Kuantan spans a total of 61 kilometers. The period with the greatest volume of street construction was 1975. These roads have an SNDi of 0.44, which is very well-connected.

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 0.44, 0.44, 0.76 and 0.73. Disconnectivity in Taluk Kuantan's street network follows a zig-zag trend. In 1975, the city was most disconnected; while it was most connected in 1991-2000.

Taluk Kuantan and Riau do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. There was not enough data from the city, as well as the Riau's street network construction.

How do development practices in Taluk Kuantan fare in comparison to others in Riau? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Taluk Kuantan was the 9th-most disconnected out of the 13 cities in Riau. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in Riau, street construction in Taluk Kuantan has become more disconnected. Taluk Kuantan ranked 12th in 1975, 10th in 1991-2000 and 9th in 2001-2014. There was no ranking in 1976-1990 due to unavailable data.

Taluk Kuantan and Indonesia 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 Indonesia followed a zig-zag trend with an overall increase.

How do development practices in Taluk Kuantan fare in comparison to others in Indonesia? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Taluk Kuantan was the 271st-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 Taluk Kuantan has become more connected. Taluk Kuantan ranked 246th in 1975, 244th in 1991-2000 and 271st in 2001-2014. There was no ranking in 1976-1990 due to unavailable data.

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

To date, Taluk Kuantan is the 12th-most disconnected out of the 13 cities in Riau. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has not changed. Taluk Kuantan ranked 12th in 1975, 12th in 1976-1990, 12th in 1991-2000 and 12th in 2001-2014.

Taluk Kuantan and Indonesia do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in Taluk Kuantan followed a zig-zag trend with an overall increase, while the SNDi of street constructions in Indonesia was at its lowest in 1976-1990.

To date, Taluk Kuantan is the 340th-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 Taluk Kuantan has become more connected. Taluk Kuantan ranked 246th in 1975, 333rd in 1976-1990, 324th in 1991-2000 and 340th in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Taluk Kuantan had a built-up area of 2.87 square kilometers, and a population of 50879 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: