Street-network Sprawl in Benin City, 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.

Benin City: city in Edo, 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 Benin City, Nigeria on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Benin City as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 2.08, which is relatively well-connected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 1.6, 2.14, 3.22 and 3.03. Street construction in Benin City 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 Benin City spans a total of 3337 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed prior to 1975. These roads have an SNDi of 1.6, 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 1.6, 1.74, 1.83 and 2.08. Overall, the SNDi of the aggregate street network has risen: the street network in Benin City has become more disconnected.

Benin City and Edo 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 Benin City fare in comparison to others in Edo? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Benin City was the 3rd-most disconnected out of the 7 cities in Edo. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Edo, street construction in Benin City has become more connected. Benin City ranked 1st in 1975, 1st in 1976-1990, 2nd in 1991-2000 and 3rd in 2001-2014.

Benin City 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 Benin City fare in comparison to others in Nigeria? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Benin City was the 172nd-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 Benin City has become more connected. Benin City ranked 106th in 1975, 159th in 1976-1990, 119th in 1991-2000 and 172nd in 2001-2014.

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

To date, Benin City is the 4th-most disconnected out of the 7 cities in Edo. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Edo, the street network in Benin City has become more connected. Benin City ranked 1st in 1975, 2nd in 1976-1990, 1st in 1991-2000 and 4th in 2001-2014.

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

To date, Benin City is the 195th-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 Benin City has become more connected. Benin City ranked 106th in 1975, 169th in 1976-1990, 169th in 1991-2000 and 195th in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Benin City had a built-up area of 172.29 square kilometers, and a population of 1550238 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: