Street-network Sprawl in Nuevo Casas Grandes, 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.

Nuevo Casas Grandes: city in Chihuahua, 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 Nuevo Casas Grandes, Mexico on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Nuevo Casas Grandes as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is -0.15, which is very well-connected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 0.06, -0.28, -0.01 and -0.14. Disconnectivity in street construction in Nuevo Casas Grandes 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 Nuevo Casas Grandes spans a total of 258 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed in 1976-1990. These roads have an SNDi of -0.28, 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 0.06, -0.27, -0.15 and -0.15. The SNDi of the aggregate street network in fell at first, but Nuevo Casas Grandes has worsened in disconnectivity since 1990.

Nuevo Casas Grandes and Chihuahua do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi in Nuevo Casas Grandes followed a zig-zag trend with an overall decrease, while the SNDi of street constructions in Chihuahua rose steadily.

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

Nuevo Casas Grandes and Mexico do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi in Nuevo Casas Grandes followed a zig-zag trend with an overall decrease, while the SNDi of street constructions in Mexico rose steadily.

How do development practices in Nuevo Casas Grandes fare in comparison to others in Mexico? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Nuevo Casas Grandes was the 162nd-most disconnected out of the 166 cities in Mexico. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Mexico, street construction in Nuevo Casas Grandes has become more connected. Nuevo Casas Grandes ranked 128th in 1975, 163rd in 1976-1990, 163rd in 1991-2000 and 162nd in 2001-2014.

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

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

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

To date, Nuevo Casas Grandes is the 166th-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 Nuevo Casas Grandes has become more connected. Nuevo Casas Grandes ranked 128th in 1975, 164th in 1976-1990, 165th in 1991-2000 and 166th in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Nuevo Casas Grandes had a built-up area of 9.27 square kilometers, and a population of 50363 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: