Street-network Sprawl in Likuni, Malawi

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.

Likuni: city in Lilongwe, Malawi

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 Likuni, Malawi on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Likuni as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 3.46, which is highly disconnected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 3.89, 3.15, 3.21 and 3.2. Disconnectivity in street construction in Likuni follows a zig-zag trend. In 1976-1990, street construction was most disconnected, while construction was most connected in 1975.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Likuni spans a total of 138 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed in 2001-2014. These roads have an SNDi of 3.2, 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 3.89, 3.79, 3.62 and 3.46. Overall, the SNDi of the aggregate street network has fallen: the street network in Likuni has become more connected. This decrease has quickened: between 1975 and 1976-1990, SNDi fell by 0.1 points, but between 1991-2000 and 2001-2014, it fell by just 0.16.

Likuni and Lilongwe do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi in Likuni followed a zig-zag trend with an overall decrease, while the SNDi of street constructions in Lilongwe was at its lowest in 1991-2000.

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

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

How do development practices in Likuni fare in comparison to others in Malawi? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Likuni was the 6th-most disconnected out of the 8 cities in Malawi. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Malawi, street construction in Likuni has become more connected. Likuni ranked 3rd in 1975, 5th in 1976-1990, 7th in 1991-2000 and 6th in 2001-2014.

Likuni and Lilongwe do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in Likuni fell steadily, while the SNDi of street constructions in Lilongwe was at its lowest in 1991-2000.

To date, Likuni is the 2nd-most disconnected out of the 2 cities in Lilongwe. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Lilongwe, the street network in Likuni has become more connected. Likuni ranked 1st in 1975, 1st in 1976-1990, 1st in 1991-2000 and 2nd in 2001-2014.

Likuni and Malawi do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in Likuni fell steadily, while the SNDi of street constructions in Malawi rose steadily.

To date, Likuni is the 6th-most disconnected out of the 8 cities in Malawi. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Malawi, the street network in Likuni has become more connected. Likuni ranked 3rd in 1975, 3rd in 1976-1990, 5th in 1991-2000 and 6th in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Likuni had a built-up area of 4.4 square kilometers, and a population of 118010 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: