Street-network Sprawl in Odoro Atasong, 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.

Odoro Atasong: city in Akwa Ibom, 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 Odoro Atasong, Nigeria on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Odoro Atasong as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 1.64, which is relatively well-connected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 1.39, 2.79, 1.04 and 1.37. Disconnectivity in street construction in Odoro Atasong follows a zig-zag trend. In 1991-2000, street construction was most disconnected, while construction was most connected in 1976-1990.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Odoro Atasong spans a total of 17 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed in 2001-2014. These roads have an SNDi of 1.37, 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 1.39, 1.72, 1.7 and 1.64. The aggregate street network in Odoro Atasong increased in disconnectivity initially,but the trend has turned around after 1990.

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

How do development practices in Odoro Atasong fare in comparison to others in Akwa Ibom? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Odoro Atasong was the 19th-most disconnected out of the 21 cities in Akwa Ibom. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Akwa Ibom, street construction in Odoro Atasong has become more connected. Odoro Atasong ranked 8th in 1975, 5th in 1976-1990, 9th in 1991-2000 and 19th in 2001-2014.

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

How do development practices in Odoro Atasong fare in comparison to others in Nigeria? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Odoro Atasong was the 267th-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 Odoro Atasong has become more connected. Odoro Atasong ranked 122nd in 1975, 121st in 1976-1990, 196th in 1991-2000 and 267th in 2001-2014.

Odoro Atasong and Akwa Ibom do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in Odoro Atasong peaked in 1976-1990, while the SNDi of street constructions in Akwa Ibom rose steadily.

To date, Odoro Atasong is the 15th-most disconnected out of the 21 cities in Akwa Ibom. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Akwa Ibom, the street network in Odoro Atasong has become more connected. Odoro Atasong ranked 8th in 1975, 10th in 1976-1990, 11th in 1991-2000 and 15th in 2001-2014.

Odoro Atasong and Nigeria do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in Odoro Atasong peaked in 1976-1990, while the SNDi of street constructions in Nigeria rose steadily.

To date, Odoro Atasong is the 226th-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 Odoro Atasong has become more connected. Odoro Atasong ranked 122nd in 1975, 172nd in 1976-1990, 182nd in 1991-2000 and 226th in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Odoro Atasong had a built-up area of 0.01 square kilometers, and a population of 55553 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: