Street-network Sprawl in San Cristóbal, Mexico

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.

San Cristóbal: city in Chiapas, Mexico

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 San Cristóbal, Mexico on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in San Cristóbal as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 2.26, which is relatively well-connected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 2.39, 1.94, 9.41 and nan. Data was not available in 2001-2014.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in San Cristóbal spans a total of 326 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed prior to 1975. These roads have an SNDi of 2.39, 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 2.39, 2.25, 2.26 and 2.26. The SNDi of the aggregate street network in fell at first, but San Cristóbal has worsened in disconnectivity since 1990.

San Cristóbal and Chiapas 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 Chiapas rose steadily.

How do development practices in San Cristóbal fare in comparison to others in Chiapas? out of the 4 cities in Chiapas. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has not changed. San Cristóbal ranked 1st in 1975, 3rd in 1976-1990 and 1st in 1991-2000. There was no ranking in 2001-2014 due to unavailable data.

San Cristóbal and Mexico 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 Mexico rose steadily.

How do development practices in San Cristóbal fare in comparison to others in Mexico? out of the 166 cities in Mexico. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in Mexico, street construction in San Cristóbal has become more disconnected. San Cristóbal ranked 24th in 1975, 78th in 1976-1990 and 1st in 1991-2000. There was no ranking in 2001-2014 due to unavailable data.

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

To date, San Cristóbal is the 2nd-most disconnected out of the 4 cities in Chiapas. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Chiapas, the street network in San Cristóbal has become more connected. San Cristóbal ranked 1st in 1975, 1st in 1976-1990, 2nd in 1991-2000 and 2nd in 2001-2014.

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

To date, San Cristóbal is the 58th-most disconnected out of the 166 cities in Mexico. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Mexico, the street network in San Cristóbal has become more connected. San Cristóbal ranked 24th in 1975, 41st in 1976-1990, 49th in 1991-2000 and 58th in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, San Cristóbal had a built-up area of 19.41 square kilometers, and a population of 180309 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: