Street-network Sprawl in Yola, Nigeria

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.

Yola: city in Adamawa, Nigeria

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 Yola, Nigeria on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Yola as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 1.16, which is relatively well-connected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 0.47, 1.11, 1.59 and 1.52. Street construction in Yola increased in disconnectivity initially but has since improved. The streets constructed in 1991-2000 were the most disconnected.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Yola spans a total of 243 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed in 1976-1990. These roads have an SNDi of 1.11, which is relatively 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 0.47, 1.06, 1.07 and 1.16. Overall, the SNDi of the aggregate street network has risen: the street network in Yola has become more disconnected. This increase has slowed: between 1975 and 1976-1990, SNDi rose by 0.59 points, but between 1991-2000 and 2001-2014, it rose by just 0.09.

Yola and Adamawa do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi in Yola peaked in 1991-2000, while the SNDi of street constructions in Adamawa rose steadily.

How do development practices in Yola fare in comparison to others in Adamawa? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Yola was the 10th-most disconnected out of the 17 cities in Adamawa. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Adamawa, street construction in Yola has become more connected. Yola ranked 5th in 1975, 7th in 1976-1990, 6th in 1991-2000 and 10th in 2001-2014.

Yola and Nigeria follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi for both of these peaked in 1991-2000.

How do development practices in Yola fare in comparison to others in Nigeria? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Yola was the 258th-most disconnected out of the 411 cities in Nigeria. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Nigeria, street construction in Yola has become more connected. Yola ranked 177th in 1975, 224th in 1976-1990, 179th in 1991-2000 and 258th in 2001-2014.

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

To date, Yola is the 7th-most disconnected out of the 17 cities in Adamawa. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Adamawa, the street network in Yola has become more connected. Yola ranked 5th in 1975, 7th in 1976-1990, 7th in 1991-2000 and 7th in 2001-2014.

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

To date, Yola is the 260th-most disconnected out of the 411 cities in Nigeria. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Nigeria, the street network in Yola has become more connected. Yola ranked 177th in 1975, 218th in 1976-1990, 230th in 1991-2000 and 260th in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Yola had a built-up area of 2.56 square kilometers, and a population of 237862 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: