Street-network Sprawl in Abancay, Peru

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.

Abancay: city in Apurímac, Peru

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 Abancay, Peru on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Abancay as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 1.46, which is relatively well-connected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 1.36, nan, 1.6 and 2.49. Data was not available in 1976-1990.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Abancay spans a total of 101 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed prior to 1975. These roads have an SNDi of 1.36, 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 1.36, 1.36, 1.36 and 1.46. Disconnectivity in Abancay's street network follows a zig-zag trend. In 1991-2000, the city was most disconnected; while it was most connected in 2001-2014.

Abancay and Apurímac 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 Apurímac was at its lowest in 1991-2000.

How do development practices in Abancay fare in comparison to others in Apurímac? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Abancay was the 2nd-most disconnected out of the 2 cities in Apurímac. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has fallen; relative to other cities in Apurímac, street construction in Abancay has become more connected. Abancay ranked 1st in 1975, 1st in 1991-2000 and 2nd in 2001-2014. There was no ranking in 1976-1990 due to unavailable data.

Abancay and Peru 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 Peru followed a zig-zag trend with an overall increase.

How do development practices in Abancay fare in comparison to others in Peru? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Abancay was the 12th-most disconnected out of the 49 cities in Peru. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in Peru, street construction in Abancay has become more disconnected. Abancay ranked 18th in 1975, 13th in 1991-2000 and 12th in 2001-2014. There was no ranking in 1976-1990 due to unavailable data.

Abancay and Apurímac do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in Abancay followed a zig-zag trend with an overall increase, while the SNDi of street constructions in Apurímac was at its lowest in 1991-2000.

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

Abancay and Peru do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in Abancay followed a zig-zag trend with an overall increase, while the SNDi of street constructions in Peru was at its lowest in 1976-1990.

To date, Abancay is the 18th-most disconnected out of the 49 cities in Peru. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has not changed. Abancay ranked 18th in 1975, 17th in 1976-1990, 17th in 1991-2000 and 18th in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Abancay had a built-up area of 3.75 square kilometers, and a population of 55008 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: