Street-network Sprawl in Qaryat Qabr al Abd, Iraq

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.

Qaryat Qabr al Abd: city in Ninawa, Iraq

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 Qaryat Qabr al Abd, Iraq on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Qaryat Qabr al Abd as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 4.65, which is highly disconnected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 5.45, 3.35, nan and 8.04. Data was not available in 1991-2000.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Qaryat Qabr al Abd spans a total of 40 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed in 1976-1990. These roads have an SNDi of 3.35, 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 5.45, 4.31, 4.37 and 4.65. The SNDi of the aggregate street network in fell at first, but Qaryat Qabr al Abd has worsened in disconnectivity since 1990.

Qaryat Qabr al Abd and Ninawa 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 Ninawa rose steadily.

How do development practices in Qaryat Qabr al Abd fare in comparison to others in Ninawa? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Qaryat Qabr al Abd was the 1st-most disconnected out of the 11 cities in Ninawa. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has not changed. Qaryat Qabr al Abd ranked 2nd in 1975, 2nd in 1976-1990 and 1st in 2001-2014. There was no ranking in 1991-2000 due to unavailable data.

Qaryat Qabr al Abd and Iraq 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 Iraq was at its lowest in 1976-1990.

How do development practices in Qaryat Qabr al Abd fare in comparison to others in Iraq? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Qaryat Qabr al Abd was the 1st-most disconnected out of the 75 cities in Iraq. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Iraq, street construction in Qaryat Qabr al Abd has become more connected. Qaryat Qabr al Abd ranked 4th in 1975, 5th in 1976-1990 and 1st in 2001-2014. There was no ranking in 1991-2000 due to unavailable data.

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

To date, Qaryat Qabr al Abd is the 1st-most disconnected out of the 11 cities in Ninawa. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in Ninawa, the street network in Qaryat Qabr al Abd has become more disconnected. Qaryat Qabr al Abd ranked 2nd in 1975, 1st in 1976-1990, 1st in 1991-2000 and 1st in 2001-2014.

Qaryat Qabr al Abd and Iraq follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi for both of these was at its lowest in 1976-1990.

To date, Qaryat Qabr al Abd is the 1st-most disconnected out of the 75 cities in Iraq. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in Iraq, the street network in Qaryat Qabr al Abd has become more disconnected. Qaryat Qabr al Abd ranked 4th in 1975, 1st in 1976-1990, 2nd in 1991-2000 and 1st in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Qaryat Qabr al Abd had a built-up area of 2.21 square kilometers, and a population of 57609 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: