Street-network Sprawl in Ungwan Shekaro, 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.

Ungwan Shekaro: city in Kaduna, 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 Ungwan Shekaro, Nigeria on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Ungwan Shekaro as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 0.9, which is relatively well-connected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are -1.14, -0.03, nan and 2.21. Data was not available in 1991-2000.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Ungwan Shekaro spans a total of 73 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed in 2001-2014. These roads have an SNDi of 2.21, 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 -1.14, -0.25, -0.25 and 0.9. Overall, the SNDi of the aggregate street network has risen: the street network in Ungwan Shekaro has become more disconnected.

Ungwan Shekaro and Kaduna do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. There was not enough data from the city, while the SNDi of street constructions in Kaduna peaked in 1991-2000.

How do development practices in Ungwan Shekaro fare in comparison to others in Kaduna? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Ungwan Shekaro was the 5th-most disconnected out of the 14 cities in Kaduna. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in Kaduna, street construction in Ungwan Shekaro has become more disconnected. Ungwan Shekaro ranked 10th in 1975, 7th in 1976-1990 and 5th in 2001-2014. There was no ranking in 1991-2000 due to unavailable data.

Ungwan Shekaro and Nigeria do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. There was not enough data from the city, while the SNDi of street constructions in Nigeria peaked in 1991-2000.

How do development practices in Ungwan Shekaro fare in comparison to others in Nigeria? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Ungwan Shekaro was the 221st-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 Ungwan Shekaro has become more connected. Ungwan Shekaro ranked 236th in 1975, 286th in 1976-1990 and 221st in 2001-2014. There was no ranking in 1991-2000 due to unavailable data.

Ungwan Shekaro and Kaduna do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in Ungwan Shekaro rose steadily, while the SNDi of street constructions in Kaduna rose steadily.

To date, Ungwan Shekaro is the 6th-most disconnected out of the 14 cities in Kaduna. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in Kaduna, the street network in Ungwan Shekaro has become more disconnected. Ungwan Shekaro ranked 10th in 1975, 11th in 1976-1990, 10th in 1991-2000 and 6th in 2001-2014.

Ungwan Shekaro and Nigeria do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in Ungwan Shekaro rose steadily, while the SNDi of street constructions in Nigeria rose steadily.

To date, Ungwan Shekaro is the 283rd-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 Ungwan Shekaro has become more connected. Ungwan Shekaro ranked 236th in 1975, 316th in 1976-1990, 333rd in 1991-2000 and 283rd in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Ungwan Shekaro had a built-up area of 2.27 square kilometers, and a population of 74272 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: