Street-network Sprawl in Teluk Dalam, 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.

Teluk Dalam: city in Sumatera Utara, 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 Teluk Dalam, Indonesia on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Teluk Dalam as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 4.01, which is highly disconnected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 3.26, nan, 7.21 and nan. Data was not available in 1976-1990 and 2001-2014.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Teluk Dalam spans a total of 33 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed prior to 1975. These roads have an SNDi of 3.26, which is in the 40th to 60th percentile of disconnectedness.

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 3.26, 3.26, 3.71 and 4.01. Overall, the SNDi of the aggregate street network has risen: the street network in Teluk Dalam has become more disconnected.

Teluk Dalam and Sumatera Utara 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 Sumatera Utara's street network construction.

How do development practices in Teluk Dalam fare in comparison to others in Sumatera Utara? out of the 19 cities in Sumatera Utara. Teluk Dalam ranked 13th in 1975 and 2nd in 1991-2000. There was no ranking in 1976-1990 and 2001-2014 due to unavailable data.

Teluk Dalam 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 Teluk Dalam fare in comparison to others in Indonesia? out of the 363 cities in Indonesia. Teluk Dalam ranked 124th in 1975 and 17th in 1991-2000. There was no ranking in 1976-1990 and 2001-2014 due to unavailable data.

Teluk Dalam and Sumatera Utara do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in Teluk Dalam rose steadily, while the SNDi of street constructions in Sumatera Utara rose steadily.

To date, Teluk Dalam is the 11th-most disconnected out of the 19 cities in Sumatera Utara. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in Sumatera Utara, the street network in Teluk Dalam has become more disconnected. Teluk Dalam ranked 13th in 1975, 13th in 1976-1990, 13th in 1991-2000 and 11th in 2001-2014.

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

To date, Teluk Dalam is the 124th-most disconnected out of the 363 cities in Indonesia. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has not changed. Teluk Dalam ranked 124th in 1975, 156th in 1976-1990, 129th in 1991-2000 and 124th in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Teluk Dalam had a built-up area of 0.47 square kilometers, and a population of 81339 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: