Street-network Sprawl in Cárdenas, 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.

Cárdenas: city in Tabasco, 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 Cárdenas, Mexico on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Cárdenas as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 2.84, which is in the 40th to 60th percentile of disconnectedness.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 1.42, 3.35, 3.32 and 6.76. Disconnectivity in street construction in Cárdenas follows a zig-zag trend. In 1975, street construction was most disconnected, while construction was most connected in 2001-2014.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Cárdenas spans a total of 267 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 1.42, 2.6, 2.68 and 2.84. Overall, the SNDi of the aggregate street network has risen: the street network in Cárdenas has become more disconnected. This increase has slowed: between 1975 and 1976-1990, SNDi rose by 1.18 points, but between 1991-2000 and 2001-2014, it rose by just 0.16.

Cárdenas and Tabasco do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi in Cárdenas followed a zig-zag trend with an overall increase, while the SNDi of street constructions in Tabasco rose steadily.

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

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

How do development practices in Cárdenas fare in comparison to others in Mexico? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Cárdenas was the 10th-most disconnected 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 Cárdenas has become more disconnected. Cárdenas ranked 53rd in 1975, 18th in 1976-1990, 49th in 1991-2000 and 10th in 2001-2014.

Cárdenas and Tabasco follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi for both of these rose steadily.

To date, Cárdenas is the 2nd-most disconnected out of the 2 cities in Tabasco. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has not changed. Cárdenas ranked 2nd in 1975, 2nd in 1976-1990, 2nd in 1991-2000 and 2nd in 2001-2014.

Cárdenas and Mexico follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi for both of these rose steadily.

To date, Cárdenas is the 32nd-most disconnected out of the 166 cities in Mexico. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in Mexico, the street network in Cárdenas has become more disconnected. Cárdenas ranked 53rd in 1975, 26th in 1976-1990, 29th in 1991-2000 and 32nd in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Cárdenas had a built-up area of 13.69 square kilometers, and a population of 113286 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: